Who Knew?
by Twi-Smile
Summary: Leah's life takes a delightful twist on the day following the Volturi confrontation. Canon-like.
1. Chapter 1 Playing It Cool

A/N A version of this story was originally posted for the SOB Rain Challenge. At the time of the contest I promised a continuation and so here it goes. Thanks to my Beta's Ash and MsKohl for giving a chick a hand.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but Leah's shopping list.

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**Chapter 1 Playing It Cool **

I ran from La Push after spending a relaxing night at home in my own bed. In about fifteen minutes I gave my mom the rundown on the unexpectedly non-violent end to the Volturi confrontation. This morning's agenda was getting to Vamp Central. I skidded to a stop at my tree, the one that held my Cullen visiting clothes. That's how I found myself stark naked when I first met him. I shimmered back into my human form and whipped around when I registered the heartbeat. His smell was very similar to Renesmee's savory yet sweet scent. Its sorta like sweet and sour chicken but not. It was so similar but lacking the new clothes smell that always clung to her.

His presence surprised me but I recognized him immediately from the confrontation yesterday. "My God, you're beautiful." He took the words right out of my mouth. My eyes met his and the universe stood still for one perfect moment. Reality ceased and started anew. Nahuel was my reality. He rushed to me without breaking eye contact.

Standing before me taking my face in his hands he asked, "Are you even real?" I nodded. He stroked my face so tenderly before kissing me softly on my lips. My imprint, my Nahuel, was there a more perfect being? I threw my arms around his neck and just held on. He needed no further invitation. He kissed me with reverence before passion took over. Sensations that had been dormant for the past year surged to the surface. I wanted him more than anything and by some miracle he wanted me too.

Our passion was wild, uncontrollable, not that we tried. I was naked already and his pants were the common enemy. We attacked them together. He did not stand naked long before he was sheathed inside me. My legs were wrapped around him and I didn't think the tree behind me would survive the onslaught. His thrusts were not gentle and I pushed back demanding more. My climax came quickly and I screamed his name,

"Nahuel!"

He followed me quickly, "Beautiful!" We panted, still connected.

"It's Leah, by the way."

With my head resting on his shoulder, my face pressed into his neck, I breathed his scent in deeply trying desperately to stay wrapped in this moment. I couldn't force the thoughts from coming. Vampire, venomous vampire, my imprint. I had effectively committed suicide by sex. I couldn't deny him anything, not even my life. I wondered how it would feel to die. I had been prepared to die yesterday for a half vampire. I just didn't expect it to be like this.

I pushed back to study his face. I was sure the pain would be starting soon and I wanted to see him fully again. Hmm. Nothing, not even a tingle. My legs were wrapped around his body, my back still pressed against the tree and I didn't know what to do next. The seconds were ticking by, still nothing; death wasn't going to save me. _Push myself free or initiate a dialogue?_ He's gonna think I'm a ho. I groaned and dropped my head to his shoulder again.

"What is wrong, Leah?" He seemed to notice our position for the first time. "Is it your back?" In one graceful moment he spun us around and sank to the ground with me nestled in his lap. "Did I hurt you?"

He stroked my nude back and I felt the stings from the small cuts and scrapes. Turns out rough naked sex against a tree trunk is not the best idea. "What have I done to you?" His worried voice kicked in the power of the imprint.

"It's okay, look." I twisted slightly. "See how fast they're healing?" I didn't want him to worry over this so I went on to assure him, "In ten minutes or so there won't be a trace."

"You're a most amazing creature."

I wasn't too keen on the creature comment, but he had seen me as a giant wolf so it was fair. "So are you." Vampire hybrid had to be a freak of nature to the second power.

We sat in silence, not the awkward kind; it was the peaceful yet fearful type. His arms were a haven from all the pain, frustration and bitterness of the past year. At some point we would have to move and my real life would come rushing back but if I stayed right here everything would be okay. I didn't know how much time passed while he caressed my back, stroked my hair, pulled me closer and held me tight, it was a pattern much like rinse and repeat but so much better.

"Someone is approaching." Aw, my imprint speaks. I was so lost in the honey tone of his voice that it was a while before the words sank in. "Do you want my pants or will you become a wolf again?"

We rose and I patted his cheek, "I keep clothes here." Scaling the tree was no problem. I shimmied into a simple black dress and pulled undies out of the weatherproof bag. Dresses were so much better, easy in, easy out. I'm no Hollywood starlet; I will wear panties no matter the inconvenience. I might shred a few pair in the course of a week, but that's why they come in packs of three, right? Bread, eggs, milk, and panties; typical shopping list of a wolfgirl.

Nahuel was dressed as well when I finished my wiggle dance into my underwear. He lifted my chin and sighed my name with reverence, "Leah". My heart felt so free and light. No, I thought, my heart would burst with joy, maybe that wasn't it either. If this were a musical this would be the moment I would spontaneously burst into song and twirl all around. Quil and Embry would be my backup dancers. Sam, Jared and Paul, not an ideal choice for back up dancers but they were closing in on us.

"What the hell is going on here?" Sam's voice boomed out.

Couldn't they see we were having a moment? I broke eye contact with Nahuel and turned my irritated glare on Sam and company. They didn't flinch, my irritated glare had been my normal expression every since Mr. Sensitive broke up with me because he was in love with my cousin and best friend. He could have lied to spare my feelings but no, he said, "I'm sorry Leah, it's just that I love her so much." She didn't give him the time of day until he damn near killed her then it was all hearts, stars and permanent scars.

"None of your business! What are you doing here anyway?" I tried so hard to bring the bitch out, but she had deserted me. Afterglow and bitch didn't mix.

"Smells like sex." Paul volunteered the unnecessary, just to be annoying. Didn't we all have super sensitive smell?

"We're here for a meeting with the Cullens, you should know this," Sam paused paying attention to the smell as well before exclaiming, "What have you done Leah?!"

"Again, none of your business!" I rounded on him fully; good healthy aggression was flowing through my veins now. The bitch was back.

"Be gone, you are upsetting Beautiful" my imprint spoke.

"It's Leah" I whispered. Maybe he wasn't very sharp which was okay, I would take care of him, speak slowly and use short words.

"We won't be going anywhere until we can be sure you will not hurt her." Sam's voice rang out in a clear commanding bass. I never wanted so badly to kick his ass. No one had ever hurt me as much as he had.

"I would never hurt her; now as I said, you are upsetting her, so leave." Nahuel's voice did not have the heavy handed authority of Sam's, it was matter of fact, a nonchalant dismissal. Sam's backup dancers Paul and Jared did not appreciate anyone issuing orders to their alpha. I could see them instinctively spreading apart to prepare to phase. I pulled Nahuel by the elbow backwards since he had shifted himself in front of me. The boys wanted to get rowdy and I couldn't take a chance with my imprint. He totally misunderstood the gesture. He turned to reassure me, "I won't let anything happen to you."

"Nate," Yeah, I just gave him a nickname. "These are my people, I'll handle this." I tried to step forward in a defensive position. He dragged me backwards.

"No Leah, you will not put yourself in danger."

"I can't risk you getting hurt," I tugged free. "Just let me handle this." A small scuffle broke out, me versus my imprint in our desire to be the one torn apart by wolves.

"I think they are playing 'No, I love you more' "Jared's voice was curious. "Leah could at least play it cool a little bit."

"Play it cool? Dude, smell the air. It's too late for her to play it cool," Paul answered with a smirk in his voice.

Jared's and Paul's commentary brought Sam back into play. "Leah! Stop!" Sam forced me to a standstill. He wasn't my alpha but I was affected by the Alpha treble, an alpha is an alpha. My feet stilled and my hands dropped to my sides. Nahuel looked perplexed at my reaction.

Sam looked at me with the same look of concern, pity and love, not enough love, but it was in every look for more than a year. "Leah, just explain the situation to us."

I looked at my brothers and clasped Nahuel's hand in mine, "He is my imprint." It was a statement with as much finality as death. My brothers, all of whom had imprints back on the reservation understood. We were all silent for a moment. Paul and Jared just nodded and Sam looked relieved.

"I'm your imprint? What does that mean?" My poor Nahuel, how did I explain that I was never going to let him go, ever, and not sound like a raving lunatic?

"Nahuel," I tried to find the right words and glanced at my brothers for support, each of them had to have this talk before, but they were looking at me expectantly like it was story time. There would be no help from that corner. "Guys, a little privacy please?!"

"No. What if he takes it badly? You would never defend yourself and we can't allow him to hurt you." Again Sam spoke with authority but there was something more. Sam was my boyfriend for ages years so I knew him pretty well. I especially knew his brand of nosy when I heard it. He came by it natural from his mother who had the only hair salon on the reservation. Most people didn't know it because Sam didn't redistribute gossip but boy did he love to collect it. Good thing he was chief and it was now his job to be in everybody's business. Nahuel didn't hear the curiosity.

"Hurt her? Why would I ever hurt her, why would you say such a thing?" Nahuel looked questioningly at Sam.

"He's dense for a vampire." Was Paul's snarky little comment. I shot him a death dagger look, but I had half wondered that myself. He continued on anyway. "You're a vampire, you drink blood. Leah has blood, and you drink blood. Come on, connect the dots."

"We have had a very short acquaintance but I do believe you are an ass, jack or hole, or maybe both, I haven't decided. I will get back to you on that." Nahuel nodded sagely as though 150 years of wisdom had gone into assessing Paul's character and then he explained. "Her blood does not appeal to me in that manner. Now, beautiful, what is this imprint?"

They weren't going to back off and Nate wanted an answer now and I swear the power of the imprint compelled me to tell him. I closed my eyes tightly because if I saw any horror I would not be able to continue. "Quileute werewolves like myself have a peculiar... I suppose you would call it magic," I used to think of it as a tragic, life destroying curse of nature but now, Disney-like magic was a much better description, "that allows us to identify our soul mate right away. You are my soul mate." There, I said it in very few words and now I just had to open my eyes and see how he took it. Yep, I just had to open my eyes, eventually.

He's not saying anything. That's a really bad sign. He could hug me or something. I had not known fear like this, not even yesterday facing the entire Volturi. There was an icy ball of terror clawing at my tummy. My imprint would reject me and I would be alone. Focus Leah, you are the fastest of both packs and you saw your imprint yesterday, slightly winded and slower than the others, he can't get away from you unless you stand here with your eyes closed like a punk bitch and he gets a head start. My eyes flew open at my Stalker's Guide to Love motivational speech.

Nahuel was still standing there. He looked shell shocked and I wasn't sure what to do so I hugged him per the Stalker's Guide suggestion, maintaining physical contact might be vital. His arms didn't go around me as I had hoped. I rubbed his back and spoke soothingly. "It's okay; I know it's a bit much to take in. Everything will be okay. We can take this slowly." Requisite snickers from the peanut gallery. "Why are you still here, haven't you had enough entertainment at my expense?"

Sam decided to let leader overrule the old biddy in him. "Come on guys, let's get up to the house for debriefing." Fuck, I needed to be there as Jake's beta. Imprint versus alpha conflicts already. I looked into his eyes trying to see if there were any clues in the deep brown depths. Worry was the only thing there.

"Nate, listen to me, we will work through this, come on to the Cullen house with me. We'll discuss this when you're ready. Okay?" I had to be understanding. We were not your run of the mill couple, if we could be called a couple yet. Immortality made any commitment between us forever in the literal sense. Forever. That scared me too and I had magical certainty on my side.


	2. Chapter 2 Back at the Ranch

A/N Thanks to my Betas Ash and MsKohl for giving a chick a hand.

Disclaimer: One of my great disappointments in life is that I do not own Twilight or its characters.

**Chapter 2 Back at the Ranch **

Nahuel followed me rather docilely up to the Cullen house. It was like my second home in the sense that it would never be my real home but I spent an awful lot of time there. I guess that made it more like a job. I went to the back yard where the group was gathered. I could have let Seth represent with Jacob but truth be told, I think Seth's real allegiance was to the Cullens now, particularly Edward and Carlisle. Seth even wanted to be a doctor now. Coincidence? I think not. I was expecting Quil and Embry to be nearby for our Supernatural Summit but again, they didn't count, even before the change Jacob basically owned them, there were like his satellites. I had to go to this meeting because Jake needed me to tell him what to do. All men, according to my mom, needed a woman for that. She had taken on the job of managing Charlie Swan and she expected me to do her proud managing Jacob until Renesmee could take over. At the rate she was maturing that might be next week, a good thing because I now had my Nate and I had an inkling he was going to take a lot of managing.

I looked over at him. He was still shell shocked but I couldn't force myself to be unhappy as long I held his hand. Just looking at him made me happy. He was slightly taller than my own 5' 9" making him 5'11" or so. He was muscled but not bulky or wiry, his physique was neat. Being surrounded by huge monster men made me appreciate his non-intimidating size. If there was one thing that was slightly off putting about the love of my life, it was that he appeared so young. He could pass for 18 easily but 20 would be pushing it and I looked about 25. I would appear to be a Junior Level cougar when he was really the cradle robber with 130 years on my 19. People could stare all they wanted as long I got to kiss his juicy lips again. He was gorgeous and I would be glad to get some alone time with him after his freak out was over.

When we rounded the house, conversation stopped abruptly, assuring me that Nahuel and I were the topic of conversation. Dr. Cullen was immediately a foot from my face studying my eyes intently. I instinctively took a step back. Carlisle was not a threat; as a general rule I loathed vampires but there was no way to maintain that attitude with the gentle doctor and his equally gentle and generous mate Esme. They were good people; I would never admit that aloud, which, considering the company I kept, meant they probably knew.

I permitted Carlisle his examination. He was checking for any adverse effects of the venom. It seemed to me that the only way Nate could be here and Renesmee could be here would be if seminal venom was different from oral venom. I couldn't force those words out in our mixed company even though I knew they all knew I had been doing the supernatural wild thing with Nahuel less than an hour ago.

"But you had oral venom, which, according to legend, should have killed you," Edward Cullen argued with my thoughts. Between him and my pack I no longer considered my thoughts private.

"Leah, how do you feel?" Dr. Cullen was concerned.

"I'm fine, really. I have never felt better," except for my time against the tree, I added silently. It was true though, I felt great.

"I can't detect anything wrong with you but I do want to conduct some tests later, if that's okay with you?" Carlisle asked with concern. I nodded; when word got back to my mother I wanted medical reassurance on my side. My mother had profound respect for Dr. Cullen as a medical colleague. If he said I was fine she would believe it.

Dr. Cullen rounded on Nahuel,"How could you behave so irresponsibly? I appreciate what you have done for us but we asked that you be respectful of our life here. What were you thinking taking advantage of an innocent girl in the forest in such a manner?" He was truly upset. "You endangered Leah's life."

Nahuel looked so ashamed that I immediately sought to protect him. "Leah is a big girl and she knew exactly what she was doing Dr. Cullen." I spoke firmly.

Then he rounded on me, "Did you really consider the danger to your imprint if the legends held to be true and you died from the venom? What do you think would have happened to him?" The guilt bomb found its target. I had not considered that. My pack would have ripped him to shreds, probably with my mother cheering them on.

"Now you on the other hand," his focus switched back to Nahuel," have a lot more life experience. You should have known better." In that moment I missed my own Daddy. If he was here I wouldn't have a vampire standing in. Of course my own Daddy would have ordered the attack on my imprint and given me shoe money to make up for it.

Nahuel seemed to be coming back to himself. "I hardly knew what was happening Carlisle. I smelled her scent as she approached and I was intrigued so I let it lead me to her and there she was in her wolf form, magnificent, like she was yesterday, and the next thing I knew, the most beautiful woman was before me and I couldn't think. I simply acted." Carlisle looked thoughtful at this but didn't say anything further. He simply gestured for us to go forward to the assembled group.

There were chairs scattered about in a loose circle like some therapy group meeting. _'Hi, I'm Leah and this Nahuel and um we just realized we are stuck together forever. Does anyone have any advice?'_ Nah, that wouldn't make a good opener. I quietly took a seat next to Jacob and brought Nahuel down into the chair next to me. Jacob looked at me in concern but he didn't say anything other than, "Are you really okay?" I nodded and that was it. It was pretty cool having Jake as an Alpha.

Carlisle started the meeting. He talked and thanked us profusely and then he thanked us again. He talked some more and then as though we were not there he recapped how the Volturi had no intention of stopping that initial march until the wolves emerged from the woods, so he thanked us again. Notice a pattern?

Edward interrupted, stopping Carlisle before he could get to round four. "The Volturi left yesterday but I don't believe they are going to let it go forever. Aro still wants to acquire, even more so since coming against us yesterday. He is curious about my wife's talent which is manifesting so strongly while she is still a newborn and now he wants my daughter as well." On cue Jacob growled beside me. "Her talent he is most certain will grow. I could have lost my daughter yesterday if you had not supported us." He fell silent. Were they really going to do this? Another round of thank you's, like we were going to stand by and let some stuck up vampires tear a little girl limb from limb.

"Come on Edward, I would do anything to keep Nessie safe, being there wasn't a sacrifice for me, for any of us." Jacob was pretty predictable. I wondered who would be next, Sam or Seth, or would Esme jump in? Ah, it was Sam. Two alpha's have a hard time being around each other because their heads need so much space.

"We protect these lands, there was no burden." Sam was trying to be cool about it but I knew it was Renesmee. Once she touches you she totally owns you. At least that's my theory. Even I thought she was the sweetest little thing in the world. It wasn't that she was the most beautiful little girl I had ever seen, it was the kindness in her soul that reverberated with me. I would have done anything to protect her. Yeah, my attitude about her surprises me too.

I considered tuning out. I didn't know how much longer the love fest would continue and I looked at them, the bright sparkling freaks of nature, just dammit beaming at us like we had performed an especially good trick.

Let the tuning out begin. Being part of the pack mind I can tune out like a fucking pro. I let my mind wander, not far though, just to the seat next to me. I leaned closer to Nahuel filling my nostrils with his scent, contemplating his profile. His face wasn't chiseled; it was formed, smooth even planes of male beauty. His eyebrows so perfectly arched, I wondered if he plucked them, did his eyebrows grow? Does his hair grow? Did that stuff stop after he reached adulthood? Hmmm, got to put that on the question list like what is your last name and other minor details. I reached over to clasp his hand into mine and he smiled at me and gave my hand a squeeze. Looking at his plump lips I couldn't wait to kiss him, maybe if I tugged a little bit he would lean over I could sneak one in.

I could have gone on in this vein until this meeting was over if Nahuel speaking didn't jolt me. "Absolutely not!" His words passionate, his voice cool. Oh shit, what had I missed?

"Leah, will not be leading any patrols."

Jake spoke up, "Leah is my second in command and a natural leader; of course she'll lead when I'm not there. Besides, it's not like she would follow anybody else in my pack."

"I am sorry I was not clear; Leah will not be running around looking for hostile vampires. She will not be subjected to such dangers. Leah will not be patrolling as leader or otherwise." Nahuel relaxed back into his chair, he had spoken.

My eyes closed briefly. I opened them, yep that had really happened. Was he trying to assume authority over me? I saw Sam uncharacteristically cover his smile and duck his head. I think he was glad to not be on the receiving end of what he was expecting to come. No one was speaking, they were obviously expecting me to handle this.

"Nahuel, it's my duty to patrol, to keep my people safe. It's what I'm made for." I wanted to handle this delicately, no need to go bitter harpy on my imprint.

"Leah, do you have any idea how dangerous vampires are?" Oh God, my imprint was a moron, I had my suspicions but my fears were confirmed. My jaw dropped. I gestured to all the vampires surrounding us.

"No, not them, they are civilized exceptions. Your existence here will no longer be secret, there will be other vampires coming, drawn to the challenge of a good fight. They will care nothing about living or dying, just alleviating the boredom of their long lives. Word will spread and they will come."

"You do realize I've fought vampires before?" I wasn't the best considering the trouble I had caused trying to take out a newborn on my own.

"I heard something about that last night, the newborns, that hardly counts. You have never fought a vampire who has survived hundreds or sometimes thousands of years accumulating experience. You have never fought a feral vampire full of animalistic survival instincts, viciously seeking a quick kill. They will be coming here and you will not be running out to meet them. I will not allow it." Damn, he was only concerned for my well being and safety but I had to get us started out on equal footing. Besides, the wolf in me was thrilled at the idea of the fights to come.

"It's not up to you to allow me or disallow me, this is what I do. I couldn't allow the creatures you describe to attack the population here. If anything, I am needed more than ever. I will be patrolling."

"If that is your wish," I didn't expect him to concede so readily." I will not stand in your way. We can begin running patrols tonight." Huh, did he say we?

"What?"

"I will be escorting you on your 'patrol duties'. You are my mate; it is my duty to keep you safe. Where I come from it is proper for the male to keep the female safe." There was an accusation in his tone and look that was directed to my brothers.

"You cannot seriously mean to go on patrols, one you can't keep up with me and you're only half vampire. I can't allow you to put yourself in that kind of danger."

"They're going to play that game again," Paul chortled in the background.

Nahuel was giving me a look, head to the side, eyes narrowed, assessing my intelligence. "I am 150 years old, to vampires I smell like food and until yesterday other vampires didn't know of my existence." He paused, waiting for me to catch up. "I have faced many vampires and a hand full of real werewolves. I am still here and NONE of them have lived to tell the tale."

I could see the 'What? Whats?' going around the circle except for Jasper and Alice.

"The Cullens are different and probably associate my scent with something precious but usually, when a normal vampire catches my scent, they don't seem to be able to ignore it. The matter can only end in a fight. I do what I can to avoid detection but once or twice a year a vampire has to be dealt with and there is no compromising." Wet panties, I don't know what it is about knowing a man is lethal that is such a freaking turn on but James Bond is hot and that's a fact of life.

My eyes widened taking in Nate with a new respect. A small smirk played about his lips. He was raised in the packs' estimation. I could see everybody appraising him.

"That's got to be bullshit." Emmett Cullen was the first to break the silence.

Nate just shrugged, confident; he didn't feel a need to prove himself. _Swoon._ My imprint was a bad ass slayer of vamps; he said it and I had no reason to doubt him.

Jasper spoke up, "If I didn't have certain talents I am not certain Alice and I would have lived to talk to him, but as he said, his unique smell represents Renesmee to us so it was quickly apparent that we were not a threat."

Unspoken but mentally acknowledged in the pack, Jasper was the man when it came to hand-to-hand. When we met them in June for training all of us had been impressed with his skill. We tried not to think about it too much though, not wanting to be vamp-lovers or anything.

"If Leah must patrol, then I will protect her." He draped his arm across the back of my chair my shoulder possessively and I melted into his side. Had he chosen to go caveman and throw me across his shoulder I would have gone docilely.

Jacob looked taken aback, I'm sure he thought I would resolve this differently. Sam looked perplexed; I hadn't taken orders from him in any capacity until he was my alpha and I had no choice.

"We can't allow this," Sam started, only for Jacob to cut him off.

"Leah is of my pack, I'll handle this." Sam looked pissed and, well, relieved at the same time. He didn't want to deal with this. The thing is I knew Sam well, next to Emily he had been my closest friend (I should have seen that coming). Anyway, I knew he was truly glad I had somebody. I bet he was over there fidgeting to tell Emily all about it. In this instance he didn't want to be the one to rain on my parade.

"We can't allow this," he repeated Sam's statement. Really, Jake, really?! That was the best he could do? For the sake of my pack I wanted to make the argument about how unwise it would be for me to run around with my imprint, you know, make my alpha look good. But there was another way.

"Jake, Nahuel has more combat experience than any of us, if what he says is true about the thrill seekers coming our way, we can't afford to not have him on our side." No need to point out he was only on my side. It felt nice though, to have a man go all protective over me. You phase into a gianormous wolf and no one opens doors for you anymore.

Jake, used to listening to me, considered the validity of my point.

Sam couldn't stay silent for long. "The Quileute people have forgotten nothing. Everything has been passed on. We do not require his assistance on patrols."

Sam asked for it. "Sam, we have the legends old men heard from their grandfather's. That is not exactly a strategy guide, none of them have ever fought a vampire. Their information has been valuable but the circle was broken. Back when our great-grandfathers were fighting so was Nahuel." My imprint was creepy old but he looked good with it.

Jake asserted himself, "I agree with Leah, his help may prove valuable."

"Oh, how progressive, the wolves are integrating." Rosalie's sneer was sarcastic, anybody with a brain could hear that, anybody but my brother that is, who sprang out of his chair.

"Sweet! Edward you can be my patrol partner!" Delusional fangirl Seth, I was so embarrassed for him. Lord knows he didn't have enough sense to be embarrassed on his own.

I settled into Nahuel's side. He wasn't at ease but I had to sit through this clusterfuck so I had every intention of keeping him at my side. He picked up my hand and intertwined our fingers. They talked and talked, the Cullens took breaks to thank and thank. Nahuel looked down at our hands and raised them to his lips for a kiss. I resisted the urge to purr. He kissed my hand slowly, his lips and tongue lingering. Seth cleared his throat. I took the hint and straightened up, Nate didn't. He let my hand go and smoothly wrapped his arm around me instead and used his free hand to hold mine again. Nahuel was staking a claim, I didn't know how I felt about that. He was my imprint and sure I wanted to be with him but I think I rather wanted to own him not the other way around.

Finally, before I lost my mind everything was wrapped up. The Cullens would not be doing patrols, they played the Alice card, a pretty good move. The two packs would be doing inner perimeter and outer perimeter patrols and we would be keeping our guard up at all times. Nahuel's words made an impression, challengers would be coming.

When the group was standing and the wolves were preparing to leave, Nate took the moment to drag me into his lap, whispering as quietly as possible into my ear, "Can we talk in private?" His lips brushed my ear while his hand massaged my thigh. The nudge on my bottom gave me a promising preview of the conversation I could expect.

"Yeah, we can talk." I could hardly wait to talk. If they didn't clear out soon for our polite departure the conversation might start right here. I giggled in anticipation and Nate stood quickly. Freaky strong and superbly graceful, there was no awkwardness when he stood with me in his arms. Sam used to try for macho motions like this but I have never been what could be called a lightweight, and until Sam became a werewolf, which took our relationship to awful places, he wasn't exactly exceptionally strong.

"Not so fast young lady!" I whipped my head at the intrusion and there I was nose to nose with Carlisle. I didn't know how much of the Vampire Daddy routine I could take in one day.

"Put Leah down. I want her to come in the house for a full examination." Carlisle reminded Nate in a more gentle tone. The reminder that I wanted a thorough exam to back me up before I had to talk to my mother was a total buzz kill.

"Hey Guys," I yelled at the retreating Quileutes "Please, nobody say anything to my Mom." Sam and Seth both stopped in their tracks. I glared at Seth which should cover him pretty good but Sam was a different matter. He and my mom were both elders and don't ask me how she got Dad's position, she wasn't even Quileute, she was Makah. I mean, if we lost Mom instead, would Dad have taken over her job at the hospital? I think not.

"Sam, I think this is something that she should hear from me." He had a responsibility that he would stand by so I had to work in a bit of the plea with overtones of guilt. "Please, for me." I was laying it on thick, hoping it would work. The last thing I needed was my Mom arriving hopping mad, not that Mom hopped she was more of a Clint Eastwood contract into cold anger type.

Before he spoke I knew he had caved, "Okay Leah, you get your exam and come to the reservation to explain to your mom, but do understand this, he is not allowed on the res. It has to be that way."

I had not really thought about it, there was loads of stuff I had not thought about yet and truth be told, I was in no rush to either. I wanted to argue for the sake of being difficult but did I really know Nahuel could be trusted to not attack a person now that he had me, his unchosen soulmate? I needed him to give up human blood, the one thing that drove his kind, for the sake of being with me, Leah Clearwater, nineteen year old part-time cashier and full time werewolf. Hell, I wouldn't buy that one.

"Okay, understood." I bowed my head to follow Carlisle up the house. Nate trailed along, his silence heavy.


	3. Chapter 3 Cullen Arms

**Disclaimer: **I do not own these characters, they were created by the talented Stephenie Meyer.

**Chapter 3 Cullen Arms **

"How is it possible Carlisle?" My mom leaned forward, intent, wanting to know how my impossible 'union' could have taken place without any ill consequences, like immediate death. Carlisle steepled his hands as though in deep thought before he made his pronunciation. The abrupt absence of noise in the house was alarming. Everyone wanted to know the answer to the million dollar question.

"Sue, I've checked Leah over as thoroughly as I'm able to here. Her blood, saliva, and urine show no trace of the venom her in her system." Carlisle was delicately leaving out the thorough gynecological exam. I swear, I should be able to give the annual pap smear a pass for the next five years based on it. "There is only one possibility," Carlisle paused and leaned back, "magic."

I scoffed, "You poked and prodded me for two hours and that's all you came up with? Magic?!"

"Leah, you weigh one hundred forty seven and a half pounds or so," (vampires suck at estimates), "and on the drop of a dime you phase into a thousand pound wolf, the concept of magic should not be surprising." Valid point, but I wanted something complicated with lots of big medical terms to back it up.

"Does this mean the legends about vampire venom being lethal are false?" Mom asked. Despite my request I had not been able to tell my Mom about Nahuel first. Jacob told Billy, who wanted my Mom to know, so he told Charlie that I had a new South American beau. Charlie didn't mention it until he called Mom at lunch time to confirm their nightly dinner plans. He called everyday to confirm, it was one thing to not take a lady for granted but damn Charlie, show a little confidence. After all, their dinner plans more and more often included breakfast plans too. One mention of South American boyfriend and my Mom, no dumb bunny, put two and two together and got four. She came over straight away. Well played Billy.

Carlisle shook his head. "Not at all Sue. I took blood from Jacob, Seth and even Jared's younger sister volunteered, and consistently their blood cells die on contact with the venom." Jared's little sister Kara was one of the new wolves we picked up in the expansion draft. Finally there was another female, but as angry as I was about being a wolf, she was ridiculously happy about this shit. "The legends aren't wrong, this is the magic of the imprint at work. Magic has decided that these two should be together so it has provided an exception." Carlisle was pulling this out of his ass, but he looked smooth, confident, and good looking while doing it. Carlisle looked good while doing pretty much anything, spewing bullshit was no exception.

Mom nodded digesting this, "If not for the magic my foolish daughter would be dead."

"Mom! I didn't mean to......it was too strong to resist." I tried to infuse the right amount of outrage in my voice. I wanted to gloss over the whole sex with a stranger thing by using the imprint phenomenon as a convenient excuse. It was a pretty good excuse in my opinion. Besides if Nahuel and I had not jumped straight into sex, would we have ever done it? It was not an argument that would sway Mom.

"What about reproduction? Will Leah be able to have children? Could she be pregnant now?"

Carlisle and I discussed this before Mom came in and I had suspected as such anyway. He looked at me, waiting for my permission to continue. Finally, someone was treating me like an adult. I nodded my consent. "Without further tests I can't be totally sure, but every indication from today is that Leah is not ovulating. It is highly unlikely that she will ever have children." Carlisle had offered me emergency contraception but I refused, it would just be a twisting of the knife. A tiny irrational part of me hoped against hope that the magic had provided more.

It was still hard to hear a second time and like the first time, my Nate held my hand. This time I managed not to cry. Mom gave me a sympathetic look and took my other hand. "Carlisle, I do not doubt your findings but you and I both know that some conditions take time to manifest. I would like it if you consent to keeping Leah under observation for at least a three day period, just to be on the safe side."

Carlisle's eyes widened in appreciation,"I suggested that to Leah, shortly before you arrived but she declined."

"She changed her mind," Mom stated with authority. Geez, I guess I just changed my mind. This fucking sucked. It seemed there was no end of people in my life to tell me what to do, my Alpha Jake, my former Alpha Sam with the right inflection, my imprint and my original Alpha, Mom. I really wish I could have kids so I could boss somebody around for a change.

I couldn't stand to worry Mom anymore than I already had today so I sucked my teeth, rolled my eyes and huffed, "Whatever makes you happy," giving in as graciously as possible.

Observation time, or Carlisle and Edward's Fun Time as I called it, was a supposedly three day observation of me. Instead, it was more like those movies where the alien fears capture because the humans will experiment on it. Take all the humans out of the equation, replace alien with werewolf and her vampire hybrid lover, and replace the government doctors with vampires. It would make an awesome horror movie. I know it would scare the shit out of me.

Carlisle took the opportunity to explore my wolf physiology under the guise that maybe the venom was affecting my wolf side and not my human side. I could have believed that if he didn't look so eager when he said, "Please phase so I can get a x-ray." He was just as happy about blood samples, a few hairs of my coat, and pretty much anything related to my wolf side.

Nahuel was of great interest to them as well but they were completely up front with him. "May I exam you to get a better understanding of my daughter's physical make up?" Edward simply asked. Edward was upfront with me too after I had that thought, "Leah, time for me to check your temperature because your mother told me to. Now be a good girl or I'll have to tell Sue." The vampire had me on that one.

I had never been so un-lonely in my life. I was watched at all times and Nahuel was with me every step of the way. When a vampire doctor puts you under observation in his home infested with other vampires, all of whom seem to have medical degrees like other people have a drivers license, its like being under a microscope. They had nothing better to do but watch me all the time, but not just watch, they took notes too. If they used cameras they could pass for my personal paparazzi.

If it wasn't for the the vampire stench and the never ending exams, I would say Cullen Arms was a vacation destination of choice. The food was fantastic, the accommodations comfortable, the entertainment equipment was top notch, and then there were the shoes.

Alice Cullen finally had me in her clutches. We were mutually not fond of each other and we were both fine with that, but there I was with my one dress and there she was with a disturbing collection of clothes and shoes exactly in my size. The clothes I could have resisted, but I stood no chance against the shoes. The hard shell that protected me melted under the high gloss glare coming off a pair of patent leather Jimmy Choo court shoes. Devious damn vampire found my weakness. I had never indulged in shoes of this caliber, having never robbed a bank, but footwear was sort of my thing. I didn't understand Bella's hang up; I am a girl ergo I like clothes.

Tonight's dinner outfit was chosen by Alice like everything else I had worn since yesterday. It was a soft mauve color in a chiffon that reminded me of the more vibrant purple dress Aunt Debra and Emily designed and made for my junior prom.

Prom was something I had looked forward to every day of my high school career. I was going to be the most beautiful girl in the room. I remember thinking the world would end if I didn't get chosen as Prom Queen. Prom Queen was my "big deal" issue. That's why I had to pull out the big guns and insist Emily skip school and drive down to help me get ready for prom. I remember my words, "Oh Em, no one does my hair up the way you do. Please, you haven't seen Sam since he was lost, you know you want to see him, safe and sound, besides, Sam would love to see you too, you guys get along so well." Seriously I had begged for it, hell, even scripted it and since Emily never denied me anything she came, see saw, and I must admit she conquered. Boy did she conquer.

I sashayed down the hall knowing my family and Sam were waiting for my grand entrance. My daddy had the camera ready, Seth and Mom were standing by too, but my attention was on Sam. Until he disappeared I never knew how much I loved that boy, since his return from the abyss he was my everything. The way he watched me enter the room confirmed that he felt the same way about me. He was awestruck staring at me. If he thought the front was special he should see the back. I did a slow dramatic twirl letting everybody get an eyeful of me, and there was Emily standing in the door to my room staring at Sam.

Being so ever so brilliant I came to the conclusion that Emily was shocked to see the changes in Sam. He was visibly altered; taller, broader, bulkier. I often wondered what he ate lost in the forest that would put so much weight on him, a natural plant steroid, high fat berries, bears? We but we never talked about that time. Even if Em noticed she shouldn't be so rude as to stare. Brilliant. How could I be so full of myself to misread the imprint? The first words out of Sam's mouth had been, "Hi, Emily." He sighed her name and I heard Daddy say, "Oh shit." Sam collected himself though and escorted me to prom where I was crowned Prom Queen and he was Prom King, it was my last hurrah in the coveted position of Sam Uley's girlfriend.

Being full of myself didn't keep me from having a niggling doubt in the back of mind. Sam never "looked" at me again. He didn't comment on my appearance and he actually took me straight home after prom. Straight home, no clever cover story, no innuendo, I was returned with nary a hair out of place.

Butterflies danced in my stomach when I left the 3rd floor bedroom in my new Jimmy Choos. Grand entrances had not been kind to this chick. I blew on my sweaty palms because I certainly wouldn't risk messing up this dress. I descended the stairs slowly, taking in the sounds of the house. Four heartbeats; two fast, Nate and Nessie, and two slower, Seth and Jake. Someone whispered, "Compliment her the moment she walks in. Don't ever delay, they never let it go. More than fifty years running and Rose still brings up I didn't say she looked nice at our first wedding."

_Leah this is not prom night, calm your yourself_.

Nate stood, putting down his video game controller. He looked at me with his full attention, not caring about the game he had ruined for Seth. He smiled at me,and I did a quick shoulder check, no Emily lurking in the wings, so I returned his smile. The man who was the center of my universe was looking at me and only me. I _felt _beautiful again, pretty, feminine, restored. The tight strapless bodice molded me just so and the long clingy skirt swished prettily about my ankles as I descend the final steps, sparing a glance at the play of my dress against my ankles which managed to look delicate in my fabulous fucking heels.

"Ah, Leah," Nahuel's lilting accent caressed my name making me tremble, "Your breasts are plump sensual orbs of perfection, second only to your eyes."

I paused a millisecond wanting to spin on my heel and run before the laughter started but I have a rep to live up to so I held my ground. The room paused, stunned, and all eyes that were not suddenly on me were on Emmett who seemed caught off guard by Nate. Emmett was looking as stunned as the rest of the room and before his mouth opened Rosalie gave him the warning look. Rose was an ally of sorts, she commiserated with me, "Mine was a hillbilly when I got him. He still wrestles bears but we've made some progress." My darling was adjusting to society at large. He and Huilen did not mix with people a great deal and Nate didn't even have human memories to guide him so sometimes he said that which should not be said. I forced a smile at his compliment.

"Leah has pretty breasts, I hope mine are pretty like that when I grow up." Nessie took a moment out of her piano lesson to help everyone remember why a 4 month old shouldn't speak. Four month olds and one hundred fifty year olds say the darndest things.

I rolled my shoulders back and sauntered forward. "Yes, my twins are the best." The dress had my boobs pushed up to my neck so its not like they were meant to go unnoticed.

Esme glided forward a smile playing about her lips,"Don't forget your lovely eyes dear. Now come this way, your dinner is ready." Nate and I followed Esme to a room near the dining room, I don't know the room's original purpose, it was just an extra room that rich people's houses tend to have. Whatever the purpose before, it was apparent it was now a private dining room set for two.

I would like to pretend otherwise but I knew I was Native American Barbie on a date with South American Ken. Somehow Esme got the idea that Nahuel and I needed time to get know each other, to "date", which roughly translated to 'since I was stuck here, she and Alice would have as much fun with the experience as possible.' Alice dressed me for my date and Esme had an excuse to cook haute cuisine. There was no other place I could go and be with my imprint so I stayed and put up with it while enjoying the clothes, food, shoes and the not being called a bitch or bitter harpy. Esme won't tolerate that kind of talk within her hearing, so I was covered for about five miles.

Nate strolled forward to pull out the chair for me at the table, a custom he thought was ridiculous. I took a seat dressed in red carpet attire and Nate took a seat barefoot in jeans and an open button down shirt. Wearing a shirt was a major concession for him and Alice could not force more on him. She tried, but he had a special brand of stubborn that could not be persuaded or intimidated by a fashion conscious pixie.

I didn't know what to say to start the evening. We made many attempts at conversation over the past two days. Half-vampires have complete recall so saying,"Tell me everything about yourself" is a huge mistake. He started with his first memories which naturally went back to being in the womb. His mommy sang to him and then she slurped some animal carcass and on and on and so forth. I was made to understand in those few days that he could remember prior to his birth that he loved his Mom. When he got to the story of his birth I was in tears. The burden of his guilt had weighed on him for over a century until he saw Edward and Bella and understood it wasn't his fault.

He continued on with his tale and I was fascinated at first until about ten days after his birth and four hours into his tale. I distracted him with a foolproof method used by women the world over, sex. Turns out it works on women too which is why we had to have this date night. Our "conversations" tended to end with orgasms. We weren't making much progress at getting to know each other outside of the biblical sense.

"Where did your Aunt Huilen get to?" I had not seen her all day, he has just the one relative around so the least I could do is ask.

"She is going on a much needed vacation."

"A vacation from what? She doesn't work." Her life was a vacation, was it not?

"According to her she's been stuck in the jungle caring for me. She saw some of the world as we journeyed here and she wants to see more."

"Aren't you worried about her? Won't you miss her?"

"She is not fearful of death and desires freedom, I don't begrudge her this."

Nate's cool nature scared me just a little. He and Huilen had been together every day for more than a century and he didn't seem to feel her absence at all. If something happened to me would he make a wolfskin rug and go on about his life? Strange how wolf fur works, I wash and condition my hair and my whole coat gets shiny and more manageable, and a bad hair day is hell all over. My coat would make him a good soft rug, because I use an excellent conditioner.

His hand lifting mine pulled me out of my rug musing. "She is my aunt and she's been stuck with a promise she made for decades, hiding out from both humans and vampires alike. She did not abandon me; she thinks of it as turning me over to you for safekeeping."

Yesterday Huilen said something to me that I thought strange at the time but it made sense now,'Good luck kid, you're going to need it.'

"Do you know where she's headed or what she wants to do?"

"She wants to get laid. Hopefully she will find a mate soon. She is looking for a tall pale mate therefore I assume she will roam the North," I coughed choking on the wine trying to go down the wrong pipe. When would I learn not to drink or eat when he was speaking?

He was patting my back in a flash, day two and we had this routine down. "I am sorry, what did I say that I should not have this time?"

Bella interrupted biting back a smile to serve the salads. Everybody liked having my Nate around.

Nate looked at his salad in distaste,"It's a bowl of leaves, it looks so unappetizing, we could graze for this like cattle. It is prettily arranged however."

I chewed thoughtfully, "Really as far as salads go it's pretty good." I detailed the different lettuce types and the various vegetables and how each tasted to me. Let the education of Nahuel begin, my own Eliza Doolittle. I felt sorry for my imprint, having me to guide him. What did I know? What would he know? He would know what I liked and truly what was more important than that? I shrugged, flimsy reasoning but I didn't have anything else.

"As far as human foods go, I believe I only like the meat," Nahuel said later as he was working his way through a cut of prime rib. "Maybe it is a vampire trait."

"First, don't refer to it as human food and secondly the meat-only tendency is a man thing so avoiding your vegetables is fine but you do want to eat your potatoes." I hated to bring up the bad things but they weren't going to go away. "My observation period here will be over soon, I will have to return to my own home." I dreaded bringing up our upcoming separation. "I don't want to leave you but this isn't my home."

"Nor is it mine, we will need our own dwelling. I must secure employment. Until then I will just be around. You have a rather nice forest here, not quite what I am used to but it should be sufficient." He was going to just be around, outside in the forest somewhere? I had done this myself for a few days right before Nessie was born but I don't consider the Olympic Park a hotel.

"That's not going to do, you'll get cold. You should stay on here." I whined a little with my request. It was how I used to get my way with Sam. Nahuel wasn't fond of the cold although it would cause him no harm. I hated the thought of him out there in the elements.

He looked at me strangely, "I may consider that, I will let you know what I decide."

Let me know? Time to introduce a new concept,"We could discuss it."

"No. You will be with your mother as you informed me so I shall decide where I will be." He had me there. He leaned forward and pitched his voice very low. Ah, he has learned this house pretty well. "If the Cullens were to extend an invitation to me it is unlikely they would not extend you one as well. However, unless they volunteer one I will not ask for one." He was barely audible to me and I hoped Edward's focus was elsewhere. He did not wish to be seen as trying to finagle an invite and I had to respect that. I nodded my understanding.

"Let's finish up here; we take over for Quil in less than an hour." Carlisle had cleared me for resuming patrol tonight and I was eager to get out and give my legs a good stretch.

A big thanks to Ash and Mskohl for pulling beta duty.


	4. Chapter 4 Taking the Old Girl for a Spin

A/N: Thanks to the Beta Ladies, Ash and Mskohl for making me appear literate. Its not an easy task.

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Stephenie Meyer created this playground.

**Chapter 4 Taking the Old Girl for a Spin**

"Give me a minute to go upstairs and change."

Nahuel looked at me inquisitively, "Change into what? Won't you be nude?"

"Of course, but I have to put these clothes away first."

"Then you will put on more clothes to wear outside to take off?

I could see where Nate was coming from. "These aren't everyday clothes, they need to be cared for properly." I twirled about in my dress to show him how special it was but mostly to show off my hot bod. It was one thing I could be sure I had going for me. Becoming a werewolf screwed up my ability to reproduce, go off to college, pass a basic physical and a plethora of everyday things but it did give me a banging body that defied gravity. The wonder twins supported the bra, not the other way around.

"That seems pointless to me, why don't you jump from the window?"

"I'm not sure I can phase mid-air like that and I'm afraid otherwise. I wouldn't want to break a bone. I heal quickly but it would hurt." I would not have admitted vulnerability to anyone else but he seemed to need explanation.

"I'll catch you; I promise you won't get a scratch." The safety net idea was intriguing.

"I'll land naked in your arms and we will behave responsibly and go straight to patrolling?" His automatic and prolonged boob check answered the question. "I'll take that as a no; besides, I have to formally introduce you to my pack tonight. I know you've met just about everybody but just shake hands and roll with it."

Upstairs I slipped into the short, flirty black dress lying on the bed. I didn't question it anymore, the dress would be a perfect fit and look good on me. A chick could get used to this. Seriously, I couldn't fathom Bella's issue, getting an Alice out of the deal would have been worth marrying an Edward, well almost, if there was a way around the smell.

I raced downstairs grabbing Nahuel's hand and rushed out the back door. Jacob and the fellas were there lounging in the backyard. No one was in wolf so that was a good sign. I looked to Jake and waited; he looked back at me, clueless. Yeesh, some Alpha; I guess I would be making the official introductions.

I held up my hand joined to Nate's, "Everyone, this is Nahuel, my imprint. He'll be running with me tonight." There was no surprise on anyone's face. They all recognized him and thanks to the shared mind it was nearly impossible to tell your own business.

"Nate," I looked him in the eye to see if I could get a feel for how he was taking this, "this is my pack." He was fine. I was worried for nothing. I gestured to them and began making introductions.

"You've met Jacob already, he's the Alpha of this pack and the heir of Ephraim Black, the last true chief of the Quileute people." Didn't I sound formal? I continued, "Ephraim made the treaty with the Cullens more than 70 years ago." I felt it was best to get the rank information out there. Nahuel and Jacob inclined their heads to each other.

"You play a mean game of Madden," Jacob acknowledged Nahuel with a 'formal' fist pound and like a champ my baby rolled with it as instructed.

"As do you," Nahuel returned. He had taken to video games like a duck to water or rather, like a boy to video games, it was a Y chromosome directive. I left Nate's side for one hour-long physical before Carlisle had to leave for the hospital and just that fast Jacob and Seth indoctrinated Nate into the ways of man.

"This is, of course, my brother Seth," Nate and Seth shared a genuine smile. They had really taken to each other, not surprising, everybody loves Seth. It could be because Seth loves everybody but I wouldn't be testing that theory out anytime soon. "Our father, Harry Clearwater was an elder of the tribe until his death last year. He was entrusted with keeping the secret of the truth in our legends."

"This is Kara, you might remember her from the two hour medical exam yesterday. We are the only two females in the history of the tribe to ever change into wolves." I had been running with Sam's pack during the vampire visit when Kara first phased. She was immediately pushed off on me. Sam didn't want to deal with a possible 'Leah part two' so Kara became mine. It was pretty cool having another girl around, somebody to guide so she never had to wear those stupid denim shorts. Only a guy would think that was packing light. "Her brother, Jared, is a member of the other pack. He was the second to phase and join Sam in protecting our people."

Kara grinned at Nate and offered her hand, "Very pleased to meet you." Kara had a huge grin on her face; she was checking out my imprint and finding him to her liking.

"I am pleased to meet you as well, Kara," Nate replied as he took her hand readily for a quick shake.

"That brings us to Quil and Embry." I introduced them together because that's how I saw them: Quil 'n' Embry, like peanut butter and jelly. The functionally retarded duo. I didn't think it was a fair assessment but that's how my girl Rachel saw them, ever since they accidentally revealed the wolf secret to her twin sister Rebecca. They are identical_,_ but Rachel's point was even if their eyes were deceived their noses should not have been. One of them, Rachel, smelled like she was doused in _eau de Paul_ while Rebecca did not. She had a point but, 'eh, these are my brothers.

"Quil is a direct descendant of the last pack that patrolled this area."

Quil was dog-tired from covering for me for the past two days and only managed a, "S'up."

I didn't quite know what to say for Embry; _Embry, whose origins are unknown, is a really nice guy? "Embry_ was the fourth to phase and join the pack."

Embry chose to be the social one, "Nate, my man, welcome to the pack." He extended a hand which Nate ignored.

"It's Na-Hu-el," Nate was slow and careful in this enunciation but Embry looked baffled.

"But Leah calls you 'Nate'.

"Yes, she does, but do not confuse yourself with Leah. She is beautiful and although your features are quite feminine, you are not. Nahuel will do." Embry was a little pissed, understandably so. Nate either didn't notice or didn't care; it was hard to tell with him.

"Dude, I told you. You look like a bitch." Quil chose now to perk up. Figured.

Embry gave Quil a hard shove, "Way to have my back, douche!"

A couple of shoves later and Jacob intervened, "Cut it out guys. Embry you do sorta look like a chick; you know this, we've been telling you for years. It's okay, some girls like that. Now go up to the house and get some grub, then you guys can head in for the night." Quil and Embry made to leave when Jacob called them back. "Look, Esme cooked these all-natural free-range chickens. They're tough as shit, you might have to phase back to get through it, but don't say anything. Okay?" Jacob was serious about protecting his favorite leeches from hurt feelings.

As Embry and Quil retreated, Embry looked back over his shoulder at Nahuel and I knew all had not been forgiven. I would have to take some time when Embry and I were phased together to explain Nate's ways.

"Kara and Seth, with the winter break being over I only want you guys to stay on until eleven tonight, you need to be ready for school tomorrow." Jacob, our high school dropout Alpha spoke.

I interrupted him because as Beta I can do that. "Jake, why don't you go back to school? Sam will bring you up to speed for the semester you missed." Sam's made up job as the in-school suspension and truancy counselor was a touch of brilliance on my Dad's part. It kept Sam at school all day with his own little classroom to manage both unruly students and monitor those who inexplicably missed a couple weeks of school. It was where we stayed until our control got to the point that we could mix with the student body. I spent a month in his class, Seth stayed a week, and Paul graduated high school from that room, with honors mind you.

"It's not a good time for that Leah, now let me finish!" I didn't say anything else but this conversation was not finished; just wait until we phase, he had not heard the last of this. Brain to brain nagging was one of the best things about being a wolf, some things had to be said, again and again and again, and this was one of them. Jacob couldn't put his life on hold afraid the Cullens would disappear with his imprint. I often told him white people never leave their pets behind and the Cullens are the whitest people I know. He didn't appreciate it, but I liked telling him again and again and again.

"Now, Leah and Nahuel, I want you running deep tonight. Jared and Paul will be covering the outer perimeter with you. Sam and I will coordinate your efforts." When it came to late night patrols our options were limited, the younger wolves really needed a full night's rest for school so that left the rest of us to work the overnight. Once the youngsters developed fully they wouldn't need as much sleep.

"Do you have questions?" Jacob looked at both Kara and Nahuel, but he had never asked this before so it was solely for Nate's benefit, otherwise the whole meeting would have been in wolf.

"I have a few questions, Jacob." Nahuel started off when I interrupted him.

"Jacob, I may in and out at different times tonight to be human so I can explain to Nate." Jacob nodded but Nate looked annoyed.

I grabbed his hand anyway and took off to my tree to stow my dress.

"I'm sorry I cut across you back there," I rushed to get that out of the way. I didn't want him upset with me. "I would rather answer your questions, that's all."

"You want me all to yourself, is that it?"

"Yeah, something like that." That was a better answer than, I am truly afraid of what you might say. Time to touch on that. "Nate, you kinda hurt Embry's feelings when you told him he looks like a girl. He's sorta shy and he was just trying to be nice."

"I know it wasn't nice, I didn't mean for it be."

"Okay then, mind telling me why?"

"It was something he said, but it is of no consequence. I am far too old to still react to overheard comments. He didn't mean any harm, I am sure. However I do not want him calling me Nate." I wonder what Embry said to irritate my baby? I probably didn't want to know, not that Embry would have said anything he wouldn't say to my face. Sharing a mind tended to make us unflinchingly, brutally, didn't your mama teach you better, honest with each other.

"Does it bother you that I call you Nate?" I had been doing it since day one, or yesterday to be more accurate.

"No, not at all, I rather like it," Nahuel was quick to reassure me, "you seek to claim me by renaming me, I am precious to you." He summed that up neatly. I hoped I was precious to him as well.

When we made it to my tree I carefully removed my dress while Nate retrieved my bag, scaling the tree as easily as I had yesterday.

"Were you planning on walking around naked tonight?" Nate wasn't making eye contact when he finally voiced his question.

"I don't see a way around it; I can't be in wolf the whole time because I'll need to talk to you on occasion." I snapped my fingers. "Nate! Up here, look at my face!"

His head popped up, his eyes met mine and suddenly I felt even more exposed.

"Have I told you today how beautiful you are?" His voice was husky with intention.

He reached for me and I didn't know if I had the will to resist but I managed to step back. "Yes, you told me twice in the shower this morning. I haven't forgotten."

"The shower was hours ago and I will never tire of telling you." He had his arms around me and I hadn't seen him reach this time, nevertheless, I was held fast. His lips were on my neck which was the strangest, erotic, adrenaline rush ever. I was equally fearful and irrationally turned on by the idea of him biting me. I wouldn't stop him, he was my imprint, and if he wanted to stake me I would help him sharpen the stick.

"You told me again in one of the second floor bathrooms and don't forget afternoon nap time in which I didn't get any rest." His hands were firmly clenching my ass and any minute now my legs would be around him with no conscious thought on my part.

I flattened my hands on his chest and pushed, "Nate, we have to patrol." He let me move him. "No nookie until after we're done."

He flashed me a mischievous grin. "It is your choice for now. You cannot parade around me in your natural glory and expect me to behave, put your dress back on and I will carry your bag."

"Fair enough." I took my dress from his out stretched hand and again I was in his arms without seeing him reach for me. He dipped his head and his lips closed around my nipple making me gasp. He let me go just as fast. My poor nipple was begging for more and the untouched one called me a cruel bitch. My people had NO idea how much I was sacrificing for their safety tonight. Nate knew. I glared at him and he took the opportunity to pull my dress over my head.

We took off at a pace faster than a regular human run but not so fast that we couldn't carry on a conversation. It took no time for us to match our strides.

"What is there to know about running around looking for vampires? I try to avoid them myself."

"We have two perimeters that we monitor now. The inner one is around the La Push border, the treaty border. We let the younger more inexperienced wolves cover this territory. No vampires, Cullens or otherwise, are allowed onto the reservation."

"This includes me, doesn't it?" Nahuel sought confirmation.

"Yes, for now. I .....think. Maybe......later..we can....."

"Shhh Leah, it's okay I understand. I am dangerous; your people are wise to still recognize this. So many do not heed the warnings anymore; they believe it is all make believe."

He fell silent momentarily before starting up again. "It has made the hunting easier though, not having to pick those who would not be missed. Long ago we could not take a villager in his prime; it would spark stories of monsters haunting the hills. No, we had to hover around the villages waiting to drain the sick or old. Not tasty, but sufficient." I was sickly fascinated by his musings. I sorta wanted to tell him keep going but I couldn't ignore the whole 'vampire drinks human blood topic' especially with him reminiscing about the pitchfork and torches days.

"Nate, you know that since we're together, I think... I mean you have to...." Shit what if I told him and he said 'I gotta bounce, see ya later.'

"Beautiful, you can tell me anything."

"You have to give up human blood, absolutely."

"You do know that I knew that? Jasper and Alice did not bring me to the area totally ignorant. Huilen and I fed on animals with them during our journey here. Unsavory business but not as bad as I would have thought. Also Jacob and Seth have both taken me aside for what they called, 'Man to man' talks during your numerous exams. I do understand the basics. I will not feed off humans. I know the consequences."

Whew! That was easy. "Wow, just like that you're giving up blood? For little ole' me?"

"You are not little and I am giving it up for me." I huffed, bristling at his comment but he went on. "I like the idea of not being a monster. I did not know another way of life existed for my kind."

I didn't have anything to say for the moment. I wanted him to wax poetic about how much he wanted to be with me but that wasn't going to happen. Did he care that I was mad? Was I really mad or just disappointed that he didn't flatter me? I guess I was disappointed; after all, I wasn't little. I was little for a werewolf but that was about it.

I was lost in my semi-faux disappointment.

"Leah, you were telling me about the perimeters." Nate reminded me.

"Oh yeah, the inner is for the younger wolves and the outer will be covered by us. We pushed the patrol area out during the meeting, remember them discussing it?" He nodded. "So basically we check our line to prevent breeches. If a breech has been made we will send a warning to the inner and everyone on the outer will fall in to track and destroy the invading vampire. See? Simple enough. "

I stopped and Nate pulled to a stop too. "I'm going to phase and check in." I stripped the dress off and handed it to him. "Stand back." He moved away obediently. "I'll go slowly so you can keep up with me, alright?" I let the fire ripple along my spine and felt the wolf overtake me. A tiny 'pop' reminded me I forgot to take my panties off again; they exploded into thousands of tiny bits. One day I would get the hang of this. My front paws thudded onto the ground and I stretched. I was ready for a good run. I loved this forest with its giant trees, minimal under growth, and constantly damp forest floor. It was made for the large animal to run free.

_**It's about time Leah. Do we have to have a rule of no sex while on patrol?**_ Jacob's thoughts cut through all other mental chatter but he wasn't really irritated, like a true imprinter he was happy that I had imprinted too.

_Please DO....I so don't want to see my sister getting done_. There was fear with a tinge of nausea in Seth's thoughts. He had been dreading my return from fear of seeing me doing the nasty.

_Silly Seth, I can't see me during sex. _Of course the mirror in my guest bedroom was in a pretty good spot.....STOP! Old Quil naked! I used Sam's method of distraction for mental clearing. Just as I got to Old Quil's wrinkled chest sprinkled with gray hair, it worked for me just like thinking of my grandma worked for Sam. Something always slipped through. Consequently, I swear I could pick Emily's hoo-hah out of a line up. It was not a talent one bragged about, but we all shared it.

_Ick, Leah stop. That's even worse. She's practically my sister too._ Seth's stomach was rolling.

_It's not a talent you needed to share with me. I could have lived my whole life happily without knowing that._ Kara had no idea how lucky she was to have missed running with the larger pack. She would be intimately acquainted with every part of Kim's body. Paul spent hours thinking about Rachel's ass and the sway it made when she walked on the beach as opposed to the road. Fortunately Rachel and Paul had not moved to sex when I left the other pack. With Jake's pack the experience was G-rated. Quil worried about potty training strategies and Jake obsessed over growth. Did Nessie grow last night? How many days since the last visible spurt? At least his worries were laid to rest.

A slight tug on my fur and Nate was on my back! On my back, like I was a pack animal.

I couldn't even say, 'Get down.'

Jacob and Seth were immediately laughing. _He's got your back! _from Seth.

_**It's his turn to ride you **_simultaneously from Jacob indicated that more slipped through than I could control earlier.

Nate stroked my fur and leaned forward to hug my neck, "Magnificent."

_Awwwww, _Kara in a burst of girly rainbow goo thought it was sweet. _Shut up guys! How else is he going to keep up? _

Nate continued stroking my fur then scratched behind my ears. Oh that felt good. Real damn good. "I always did want a dog." He patted the top of my head.

_Please just shoot me now, large caliber gun right between the eyes. _My whole pack including Kara was laughing now. I could throw him off but that would hurt me more than it would hurt him. I could scratch, get off my damn back on the ground, but that was silly.

_**Chill out Leah, is he even heavy on your back?**_ Jake urged me to be reasonable. He wasn't heavy on me, freakish strength came with the whole werewolf thing.

_So! I don't want him riding me. It's just wrong!_

_**Leah get over yourself, the only problem you really have is he's a boy and you're a girl. I never heard you bitch about Kim or Rachel catching the occasional wolf ride.**_ Jacob was right but it chafed.

It had taken me long enough to actually start my patrol so I let it ride or rather I let him ride, for now. I gave in to the wolf and found my stride. It wasn't so bad. I was as slow as Jacob but that would have to do for now.

_**Bitch. **_Jacob's response was automatic and without animosity.

_Whatever dude, I think I'll tell Esme you called me a bitch again. I might even be able to work up a tear. _

_**You'd better not. **_It wasn't an order but Jacob didn't want me to say anything, jokingly or not. Esme was a sensitive and gentle creature much like a kindergarten teacher, but one from the old school. The really old school, one room schoolhouse old. She came from the era before timeouts, discipline was a paddle, the switch, a leather strap or in Esme's case it was a wooden spoon. It looked like a normal spoon, but it seemingly moved at the speed of light. She only used it when the guys were getting rowdy at the table, but what did she expect? They were the proverbial pack of wolves. _**She's kinda funny about you, so don't play like that.**_

Quil 'n' Embry joined the mental chat room on their way back to La Push. _The spoon came out tonight. _Quil bragged.

_What'd you do?_ Seth wanted to know. He had never gotten the spoon; neither had I. Hanging out at the Cullen's was not my favorite past-time like it was for the guys. I checked in with Jacob and visited on occasion to watch over my Mom but I didn't hang out. Of course I used it as an excuse like my whole pack did to explain our prolonged absences. Hanging out at the Cullens was also code for wolf business.

_Man, you know that shit I said, "I hope Leah won't be such a bitch now that she's getting some." _Embry reminded them but it was news to me. _Well Esme didn't flip out, but she did bring up her ban on the "b" word in reference to our sister while holding that spoon in a menacing manner. _

_It was weird you know, usually you don't ever see the spoon coming, you only see it retract, if you see it at all. _Quil was reflecting on his various spoon encounters. The knuckle raps didn't really hurt. They figured Esme missed teaching so she enjoyed a game of school marm from time to time. That had to be the case otherwise why would she set such a formal table, nothing less than a ten piece place setting graced the dining room. It couldn't be because she enjoyed doing dishes, it was a lucky day when half of them returned unbroken. She cooked, they ate, and they managed to have fun while doing it.

The boys agreed with me and set off on their own reminiscing. They had really missed hanging out in Esme's kitchen and dining room while the witness vamps were in residence.

Quil went off on a tangent about a food fight instigated by Emmett. All the guys joined in, enjoying the mental chit chat. Quil and Embry decided to keep running for another hour or so just to hang out, it had been ages since we had all been together like this. Jacob checked in with Sam. It was odd how they could choose to broadcast their thoughts like speakerphone. Jacob and Sam could open communication between the packs. Our projected thoughts were communicated but not our internal ramblings. It was kinda neat. Paul and Jared were just coming on when the unmistakable scent of a vampire assaulted my nostrils.

The smell was still faint but harsh even though I had spent the past two days housed with vampires. This was not a vegetarian vampire. I stopped in my tracks to gauge the distance of the incoming enemy. The smell was intensifying fast, coming straight at me. Adrenaline and fear shot through my body in equal force. Would I be able to keep my imprint safe?

_**Leah, do not engage. Let it chase you straight to us. **_Jacob made a request rather than an order, but I didn't want to give my back to a vampire with Nahuel on it. I wouldn't be fast enough to escape while carrying him; I would rather stand and put myself between him and the advancing vampire.

I could hear Sam broadcasting through Jacob, _Give her an order dammit, I knew this imprint on patrol was a bad idea. _He yelled at Paul and Jared to hurry up. I crouched into an attack stance. There was a slight change in pressure on my back and Nahuel appeared ten feet in front of me. The vampire scent intensified. I stalked forward and caught a single glimpse of the raven haired male vampire with brilliant red eyes.

That single glimpse was all I was afforded. One moment it stood fiercely staring at us, the next its head rolled on the ground.

I had not seen a thing and, hell, I was looking.


	5. Chapter 5 NaLeah

A/N: Read, enjoy and don't think too much. Thanks you Ash for giving this one performing Beta duty.

Disclaimer: I own nothing; Stephenie Meyer created a wonderous playground.

**Chapter 5 Na-Leah**

_**Dayum, did you see that? **_Jacob was in awe.

_No, I didn't see anything and I swear I was looking. _I was still shocked. My human eyes were stronger than a normal human's eyes so I could track most movement. In my wolf form I didn't miss anything wolf or vampire but Nahuel was the exception.

Nate leapt lightly from the headless vampires back.

_How'd he do that? _I didn't know who asked, not that it mattered. I didn't have an answer.

"Sorry, Beautiful. I cannot believe I let him get that close to you," Nate apologized. I moved forward. "No, stay back. I do not want you near the head. Let me get the fire started."

The body stood motionless like it was rooted to the ground.

"I hate this part." Nahuel was speaking again. He set the head on fire with a lighter from his pocket. I expected flint and a stick or something. "Dismantling the body is distasteful but necessary, they burn better that way."

_We will do that part, tell him. _Sam announced through Jacob who seethed wordlessly at Sam issuing orders through him.

I ignored Sam and advanced instead. I gave Nate my toothy wolf grin, my set of choppers was better for dismantling than his.

I could tell from his stance that he was going to object but by then the boys had arrived. They rushed straight past me to tear the body apart.

Jacob and Sam hung back. They had some questions.

_I don't know what I saw. _I told them.

Both alphas gave the order to phase. I nudged Nate and he followed me. Once we were out of sight I phased and quickly took the dress and extra panties Nate was holding out for me.

"Nate what did we just see?" Sam started off only to be interrupted by Embry.

"It's Na-Hu-el and you didn't see anything, neither did we," Embry bristled against Sam. There was always some drama; usually I started it, but not this time. Sam became convinced Embry had to be his brother therefore he took a special interest in Embry which Embry found offensive. He asked his Mom who assured him Joshua Uley wasn't his dad so any attention from Sam was like an accusation that his Mom was a liar. Friction.

"Nahuel, what didn't we see?" Sam attempted to humor his little brother. He wouldn't let the brother thing go. Sam hated being an only child so he was **determined** to claim Embry for the Uleys.

"Leah and I encountered a vampire and I killed it. I should have never let one get so close to her." It had been real close too, I had almost gotten a good look at the male vamp before his head rolled. Almost.

"How did you get over there so fast?" Jacob was asking the question now.

Nate simply stated, "I ran."

"Is this some form of torture? How the fuck did you get to that bloodsucker so fast you moron?" Paul screamed at my imprint. _**Paul fucking screamed at my imprint.**_ I charged at him but Seth got him first and shoved Paul hard in the chest with both hands as Jacob's arms restrained me. "Watch, yourself man. That shit's not going to fly." Seth actually sounded angry.

Paul made to shove Seth back but Nate's grip around Paul's chest and arms prevented any further movement. Paul didn't try to struggle, at first he was momentarily stunned like the rest of us. Nahuel was beside me one moment and the next he was more than 15 feet away restraining Paul. The shock passed quickly as Paul easily broke Nate's hold, turning to give him a hard shove in the process. Nate was knocked back several feet, stumbling slightly but staying on his feet.

The polarization was instantaneous. Quil, Embry, Seth and Kara surrounded Nate. I almost fell when Jacob let me go so abruptly to join the others. I tripped over my feet but didn't stop moving until I had Nate behind me to face whatever might come. Paul was gonna have to come through us and his prospects didn't look good.

Paul and Jared had likewise moved into formation with Sam at the head. Sam addressed Jake directly, "It's cool, I got him." He turned and laid a hand on Paul's shoulder. "Paul, tone it down. You can't yell at Leah's imprint. How would you like it if someone yelled at Rachel? You'd want to fight to the death."

Sam had diffused the situation but I was more impressed with Paul's restraint. I had seen him phase over the X-Box vs. Playstation debate. I was still angry with him but I didn't want to hurt him really. He was still my brother, I would gladly take a bullet for him or any of them but with Paul I could never be sure I wouldn't be the one pulling the trigger in the first place.

Paul snorted. "If you yell at my Rachel you're on your own. That's a line I don't cross." Paul's legendary temper, so quick to flare and quick to cool, I didn't know why he bothered getting angry in the first place. It was like, dude wait one minute and you'll be over it_. _ That temper didn't seem to come out in defense of his imprint Rachel. I think she punked him so he thought she was just as scary to other people too. To be fair, Rachel was kinda scary. She never issued verbal warnings; she was all bite and no bark. She would have made a kick ass werewolf.

"Okay, anybody yelling at Rachel is gonna get what's coming, but what if it was Kim?" Sam asked. Kim did get yelled at; poor sweet child was as dumb as bag of rocks. She used to get yelled at, but no one dared to try it now. It doesn't take too many warnings from the La Push gang, as some people insisted on calling us, to understand Kim was off limits no matter how boneheaded she could be.

"Yeah, yeah, I getcha." Paul answered Sam and looked to my pack which had eased out of the ready to rumble position. "Sorry Leah, sorry Na," he cut off the obvious 'Nate' and edited, "Sorry Mr. Leah." Then he smirked.

When we were all one pack a reminder like that would never have to be issued but now the connection was different, however the obligation was the same.

"Apology accepted, you are an asshole and cannot help yourself, I understand."Nate gave Paul the answer he promised him. "However, you must not attempt to harm Leah's brother; that would upset her and I will not allow it."

"Okay, Okay, Paul's an asshole, big whoop, welcome to our world." Jared was antsy for an answer. "What gives, did you teleport?"

"No, as I said before. I ran, one leg in front of the other in a fast pace."

"How did you run so fast?" Quil asked without condescension or impatience which was probably why Nahuel gave him a complete answer.

"It is something I do. I can achieve a tremendous burst of speed. It cannot be sustained for a long period of time but the burst is enough to give me an edge in a fight." Nate shrugged his shoulders like it wasn't a big deal that he moved so fast he became invisible, there wasn't even a blur to track.

"That was amazing, man, thanks for looking out for Leah," Jacob's response was genuine.

When the hell did I become a damsel in distress? That's never been me. "You know I'm not totally helpless. I'm a werewolf, for crying out loud!"

"Shapeshifter," Seth corrected smugly.

"I shift into a wolf, that makes me a werewolf don't you think?"

Seth's mouth popped open in eager know it all anticipation.

"I am NOT getting into this stupid debate. We were descended from wolves and we shift into wolves, not birds or turtles. Giant wolves only. It's not like some days I can be an otter."

Seth shut his mouth for now.

"I have a question of my own. How did you see me?" Nate addressed my brothers.

"Damn, do you two talk _at all_? You haven't explained the pack mind yet?" Sam asked but didn't wait for an answer with a good lecture brewing. "Look, I know you guys are really enjoying each other but you need to take some time to talk, you know, get to know each other." Then he smiled his huge horsey grin. Funny, his smile never looked horsey to me before, I used to love his easy smile.

Nate caught my eye with his smirk and I rolled my eyes, thereby we agreed to ignore Dr. Sam's advice. We had forever, no need to rush into getting to know each other, sex on the other hand was a whole different story, it was hot and now.

"I have been told of the pack mind, but you are not of her pack. How did you 'see' me?" Nate was addressing Sam specifically. I actually had not told him of the pack mind, I didn't know who did. I wanted to tell him and I was going to when Carlisle cleared me for tonight's run. I was going to sit him down and tell him all there was to know about the pack but he had to smile at me and I pretty much forgot everything except it was a good time for a nap, a naked nap.

"Sam and Jacob were gossiping with each other," Kara decide to fill Nate in, "Alpha's can chit chat with each other. Sam and them, "she pointed to Paul and Jared,"could only see what Jacob chose to share with Sam. Got it?"

"I do understand. Thank you for explaining, Kara." Kara beamed, glad to be the one in the know for once. "This form of communication is a good thing. We have spent too much time dallying. This one may not have been alone; we need to get moving to see if there are any traces of another vampire nearby."

Jacob and Sam both took on expressions of offense. Who did Nate think he was issuing orders? Instead of conflict, they united. Jacob and Sam agreed that Team Jacob would fall back in to the inner perimeter and rouse Colin and Brady to tighten the protection around LaPush while Sam's packlet would trace the vampire trail. Hands down Jared was the best tracker, his notoriously weak stomach translated to an extraordinarily sensitive nose. Nate and I were put on watching the fire, because only Leah can prevent forest fires.

"This blows," I huffed, "I wanted some action." We were relegated to fire duty because we had seen our fair share of action for the night. Wolves love to fight. There was a collective sense of disappointment over the Volturi confrontation. Man, if only the Cullens had just stayed home we could have handled the situation proper like.

"Come sit with me." Nate held his hand out to me. He settled on the ground with me in his lap. "The fire will not burn for long and we can get back out there. We can talk."

"What do you want to talk about?"

"Why do you want so badly to fight a vampire? I cannot understand this desire to put your life at risk."

"Fighting to protect human life is the purpose of the wolf; it's evidently why I was put on this earth. It's what I'm made for."

"No, you were made for me." Nate's matter of fact delivery made my alarms ring. Sam used to say stuff like that if he saw some old movie and a line struck him as being especially theft worthy, 'Leah you are my sunshine' or some crap like that but Nate was a different story altogether.

"Hmm, really? Made for you? What makes you think that?"

"I understand your imprint phenomenon now. Edward explained it to me. You were made for me, just like Bella and Edward made Renesmee for Jacob."

This was worse than I thought. I was pretty sure that whatever Edward had said to Nate had not been, 'Guess what we got Jacob on our honeymoon trip? No idea? Come on in here Renesmee. Is she not the prettiest little thing you ever did see?'

"Did Edward say that?"

"Not in so many words. I asked him about the obvious attachment between his daughter and Jacob and he explained that it was an imprint similar to ours. His words were too numerous for me to want to repeat and difficult for me to pay attention to the entire time but it sounded like he and Bella owed Jacob something or another and at the end of his story there was Renesmee. I was listening for you to wake up so I may have missed a few details but that is what it seemed to come down to."

This was getting bizarre but I had to keep going, because in some illogical way I could see his point . "You know, according to that theory, you would have been made for me since Jacob and I are the wolves in this equation?"

"Yes, but Jacob and I are older than you and Renesmee, therefore you were created for us." Nate was deliberate with patience in his speech as he explained his unique take on imprinting.

"So you think my parents made me for you?"

"Of course not! Your parents do not know me, but we were discussing you and your purpose. You were made for me."

"So I'm a werewolf for you?"

"You are not a werewolf," I opened my mouth to give him the wolf not otter spiel I gave Seth earlier but he put his finger over my lips in a sshh gesture. I suppressed the urge to lick it just barely. "If you ever meet a real werewolf and I hope that you do not, however you would never say such again. They are vile creatures with no regard for life. You are different because I need you to be."

"Have you ever had a girlfriend?" There was so much I didn't know but I wanted to start with something that would invariably make me jealous.

"No, not really. I tried once but it did not go well."

"Was she vampire, human or other?" I didn't know what else other could be but my life was strange enough that I had to allow for the possibility.

"Human, naturally."

"Why naturally?"

"Vampire women are cold, hard and hold no sexual interest for me. I cannot imagine wanting to be inside one." He shuddered a little with revulsion. At least that was one less thing to worry about. He continued, "Vampires only want two things from me, my sex and my blood. I am not willing to share either."

"Tell me about your human almost girlfriend." I braced myself.

"Leah, are you sure you want to hear this?"

_No, not really_. "Sure, tell me. I want to know everything about you."

"No, you do not, but I will tell you anyway. It was shortly after I reached adulthood; I thought I could have a human friend and companion since my changes had stopped. I love Aunt Huilen but I yearned for the type of relationship that I had seen between men and women. I am a man and I have the urges of a man." He explained as though I could not attest to that. "I met Ana at a cattle ranch where I picked up work as a hand for a season. She was sweet and I grew to care for her over the weeks that I knew her. She wanted to be closer to me and I resisted, but eventually I persuaded myself that I was strong enough to handle the closeness. I was not."

He finished his tale and if I had an iota of common sense, I would have seen the end coming. I pulled his head to my chest, the memory still bothered him and comfort was the only thing I could offer him.

He went on with reluctance, "I have never again tried, the monster within me was never going to allow more."

"I'm sorry, baby." The memories seemed to cause him such anguish. Talking was overrated and painful. We sat until the fire went out and there was nothing but ashes left.

"Come on, let's get going again. I doubt the boys found anything, we would have heard them by now."

I stripped and Nate repacked my bag efficiently. After I phased I waited for him to mount my back, instead he patted my shoulder and said, "Try to keep up." Then he was off running, not super fast like when he attacked but more like 'wolf in pursuit of a meal' rather than 'wolf in pursuit of a vampire'. I could still see him as I took off in his wake and picked up my pace to catch him. As I closed the gap he sped up, playing with me. It was time to end this so I unleashed, feeling the thrill of the chase. My stride lengthened, it was as close to flying as I could get and I loved it. Being a wolf had its perks.

_Was that Leah saying something good about being a furball? _Seth was still out and running, he had heard me complain about being a wolf more than anyone.

_You should be home in bed by now_. I scolded him absent-mindedly. I still hadn't caught up. I was working to keep Nate in my sight, that ten second head start was killing me.

_I'll go to Sam's class to catch some z's. Look at him go! Why was he so slow the other day? _Seth questioned me and again, his guess was as good as mine. _Leah, please, can you try to get to know him, this is getting embarrassing. _

I tuned my baby brother out. It was time to end this, I pushed harder and finally closed the gap and with another push I was ready to teach him some respect. _**Leah, don't push it. See how long he can go at regular wolf speed. **_

_Great Alpha, that is a good idea, for once._

_**For once? Whatever. **_

Team Jacob stayed on the outside and since Sam was down for the night, making cross pack communication impossible, Paul and Jared ran the inside only. I tried to run Seth home but he held his ground and I let it slide, it wasn't worth issuing an order. After a while we let our wolves take over, ending conversation.

Nate and I ran in a companionable silence too. He made the occasional comment on the landscape but nothing more, he matched my pace the entire time. Finally the sun was coming up and we made our way back to the Cullen house. I wasn't tired, but per the agreement Alice could only 'patrol' if we were out of the forest.

My tree was a stop on the way to stow my bag. Nate's hands were all over me the second I phased. "Patrol is over Beautiful. Now is nookie time, yes?"

"Oh hell yeah." I sighed into his mouth as my back hit 'our tree'. Some couples had a song, we had a tree, our tree was much more effective. We weren't frantic this time. I had no fear of death and we didn't need to struggle to keep it quiet. Nate took his time, worshipping my body much to my delight. He made every inch of me feel beautiful and cherished. It may be too soon for love but he wanted me and it felt so good to be wanted.

***************

"It's Na-Na-Na-NaLeah" Emmett's voice sang out mimicking the Chia pet theme as we walked through the door. Rose giggled a little at his side.

"Real cute, did it take you all night to come up with that?" I blew it off. I never had much reason to interact with Emmett before.

"Don't know what else to call you, you freaky wolf vamp combo. Edward and Carlisle have been waiting for this. It was just a theory but it has already happened."

"What are you going on about? Just spit it out!"

Rose sauntered forward holding a hand up to Emmett, "Cut it out. Carlisle is covering for Dr. Snow so I have the pleasure of examining you this morning."

"Where is Edward?" I backed off a little. Rose didn't scare me, I could take her if I had to but she did make me uneasy. I had seen the 'Rose goes for Bella's blood' played out too many times in Jake's memories. He savored landing that kick. Edward was the lesser of the two evils, he at least knew me better.

"He's at the cottage. Now quit stalling, this is as much fun for me as it is for you." Rose whipped her hair around in a move straight from the 'I Am More Beautiful Than You, Recognize' handbook. I used to do that too when I had long hair and still felt pretty.

"Open." I let Rose put the thermometer in my mouth. I wasn't worried about the venom anymore. How could my imprint be bad for me? Rose pulled the thermometer from my mouth, "She studied it momentarily, "Just as I expected, still a bitch."

Emmett snickered.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." I rather liked that side of my wolf. I could do cordial and polite for the sake of keeping Mom from backhanding me, but I no longer felt bothered with trying to be nice just for the sake of being well thought of. I didn't pull my gloves off; I had to remember to put them on in the first place.

"What is it that Carlisle and Edward where waiting for?" Nate asked.

"Listen to her heartbeat. Now focus on yours." Emmett paused for dramatic effect, a vampire trait. "See, what I mean? Your heartbeats are synchronized. They were expecting it to happen sometime today, you're just a little ahead of schedule. Na-Na-Na-Na-Leah."

"More freaky wolf shit," Rose sneered.

It was impossible to miss now that I knew, THUD THUD.....THUD THUD in tandem. Nate pulled me into his side to whisper in my ear,"Na-Leah, I like it. As I said you are mine."

I giggled as his breathe tickled my ear, "No, you're mine."


	6. Chapter 6 Home Alone I Wish

**A/N:** Thanks for the beta work Ashtwi. I still don't own Twilight or its character.

This chapter rambles a bit I wanted to establish Leah has some dimension outside the misery.

**Chapter 6 Home Alone...I wish**

"She giggles?" Emmett asked.

"Girls giggle, you know?" I answered absent-mindedly while Nate pressed a kiss to my earlobe.

"Girls do, but you don't, not once since I met you," Emmett argued.

No point in debating that; he was probably right, or absolutely right, to be technically correct. I went with a stand by response, "Whatever, dude."

"Do I make you happy, Beautiful?" Nate questioned me with the obvious. He looked so serious.

"Of course you do, silly. You breathe, it makes me happy." Mushy crap spilled forth, heartfelt mushy crap.

Alice breezed down the stairs with Jasper on her heels. "Was it a quiet night on the Western front?" She stopped a few feet away at a 'you stink but I'm not going to say anything about it' distance.

"We encountered one vampire less than an hour into our patrol. I destroyed it and the other pack searched, but did not find traces of any others in the area." Nate gave them a brief rundown of the night. Everyone snapped to attention.

"Who was it?" Jasper wanted to know.

I scoffed, "How the hell should we know? We didn't exactly perform a pre-head removal interview."

Rosalie sneered, "Maybe you should. Our friends _are_ known to visit on occasion."

I thought about that for a moment, "Tough, tell them to call ahead in the future. Any vamp we come across that doesn't smell like you veggie vamps is going to get what's coming."

"It wasn't anyone we knew." Edward made the pronunciation as he and his family began their obligatory all day, every day visit.

"You guys agreed to the new boundaries." Sam had suggested the new boundaries, seems he would never forgive himself for letting a hostile vampire get close enough to see our Nessie. Quileutes from generations back must be rolling and spinning in their graves, we had a whole coven of vampires under our protection and when we weren't watching their backs, they had the job of watching ours.

"I would love to stay and chat but Jazz and I are on duty. Leah, you'll probably be back on your reservation when I return but I wanted to tell you it's been a pleasure dressing you. Thank you very much." Alice pumped her shoulders then repressed the hug, a gesture I totally appreciated.

"You're welcome; its...it's been unreal." I couldn't fathom why Alice had a bizarrely large collection of clothes in my size. She couldn't even 'see' me to anticipate I might have need for or would even accept her pushy vampire generosity. Maybe she had a shopping addiction and had run out of targets. "Your taste is excellent."

I looked at that ingrate Bella dressed in her uniform of jeans and a t-shirt with sneakers, whereas I stood in last night's dress which still looked nice enough for the unexpected early morning cocktail party even after a night out running the in the forest. I could hardly wait to see what I would be wearing today. I wondered if I got to keep the clothes, or were they like hotel robes and had to be surrendered at the end of my stay?

"Alice would be honored if you took the clothes with you," Edward volunteered. Great, now everybody knew I was a greedy cow. At least I would be a well dressed greedy cow.

"Of course, the clothes are yours. Take them home. Bye for now." Alice grabbed Jasper's hand and they were gone.

"Where are they going, surely they won't be running the border?" Since the conversation had finally moved past clothes Nate had something to say.

Edward explained as Alice and Jasper disappeared, "Alice can't see as well with you guys in the house. It interferes with her vision; therefore she will be using our cottage."

Nate wouldn't be able to stay here indefinitely; we couldn't put Alice out of her home. Where, oh where was the easy button when I needed it?

"Don't worry about that yet," Edward reassured me. Those three little letters, Y-E-T, made up such a powerful word. Suddenly I felt tired, the honeymoon was over. I wanted a shower and a nap.

"Wakey, wakey."

"No shaky, shaky." I mumbled in automatic response to Emily. We had been doing this routine as long I could remember. Wakey, wakey was followed by having the bed vigorously shaken, usually by jumping up and down.

"Then make quick like with the wakey, wakey." I opened one eye to peer at Emily. Her face was maybe two or three inches from my mine, not surprising since she was curled up in the bed next to me.

"Em, that's really creepy. How long have you been waiting for me wake up?"

Emily smiled, "Not long, maybe half an hour or so."

I stretched in the queen size bed, yawning, and rolled onto my back. The bed was an anti-Emily reaction. I got rid of the twin beds that had been in here forever when Emily stopped ignoring Sam. Mom told me not to but Daddy bought this one for me anyway. "Emily, you should have woken me up."

"I just did." Emily rolled on her back too.

"Sooner, Em."

"You were still snoring, you needed more rest." Like me, she was looking at the swirl pattern on the ceiling. It was ugly but Daddy painted it especially for me so it was special, still especially ugly however. Painting had not been his calling but he was a great dad.

I wondered how long she would have held out waiting for me. "I do **not** snore." Emily had been telling me this for years but until I heard it myself I wasn't going to believe it.

"Yeah you do, always have when you're especially tired." I opened my mouth to object but Emily hushed me, "I know these things so let it go." Emily knew every gory detail about me and she loved me anyway. She deserved a better best friend but, 'eh that's what blood will get you.

"What time is it?" I asked.

"It's time for you to tell me absolutely everything. Oh Leah, I'm so happy for you!" Emily snuggled a little bit closer to me, my heat didn't bother her. Satisfaction oozed from her. It was one thing to expect an inquisition; it was another to wake up to it.

I didn't try to move. Snuggling with Emily felt so right, like before the myths and monsters became reality. It was just me and Em, the Clearwater girls, as we were know all around La Push. Emily and I had steadily been gaining ground but the double edge of guilt that was keeping us apart would finally be gone now that I had Nate, my very own imprint.

"Can I get up, put on some clothes, and maybe get a bite to eat first?"

"No, of course not." Emily shook her head.

"How foolish of me to ask for so much. Can I at least pee?"

Emily pretended to consider that for a moment. "Okay, I'll allow that."

"Thank you your highness." I crawled out the bed and crossed my room to head down the hallway to the bathroom.

"What the hey?" I jumped back a little in surprise. Rachel was sitting on the sofa in the living room absently flipping through a magazine and Kim was cross legged on the floor at the coffee table laboring over homework. They both jumped too.

Rachel recovered first with an attitude, "I wish you people, and I use the term lightly, would show some common courtesy and make some noise when you move."

"I live here. What are you doing here?"

"Seriously Leah, you know why we're here, don't try to stall."

"I can't figure this out." Kim shut her text book and spoke irrelevant to the topic at hand, her signature conversation style. "Jared, will help me later." She stared blankly for a moment then joined us, "Leah start talking, I don't have all day."

"I'm not saying a word until you feed me," and with that I finally made it to the bathroom.

Wolfchicks were rude creatures, showing up at my house at the crack of 4:00 pm demanding a confessional. Rude and demanding, but they were my best friends now. What a huge difference a year makes; last year I wasn't close to any of them.

I made peace with Emily after Daddy died because Daddy would have wanted it, but mostly because I needed her. Selfish but true. We had peace but it wasn't the current, 'climb in my bed and watch me sleep' closeness we shared now. That closeness took time, I had to let go of Sam and my broken heart first. Carrying a torch for your best friend's fiancé puts a serious damper on the relationship. It wasn't instantaneous but I had managed it for the most part.

Despite being close in age and growing up in the same small community Rachel and I were not friends. However we did have a history, a history in which she kicked my butt. If one chooses to boast with bravado and trash talk about one Black twin, a shifty-eyed shoulder check should be performed first. I was bragging about how I had Sam and Rebecca, his previous girlfriend, would never get him back when she got tired of the ditzy surfer dude she chose over Sam. There may have been some unflattering adjectives thrown in here and there but I don't try to remember too much about that day. What I do remember is this; Rachel Black is freakishly strong and pretty damn fast. She gave no warning, she came out of nowhere like a ninja and proceeded to kick my ass. My friends managed to pry her off me and I let them 'restrain' me too while praying that she didn't get free during my face saving trash talk. I was pretty sure I could take Rachel now, so it was easy to hang out with her these days.

Kim was barely on my radar. She was a seemingly sweet, quiet girl in two of my classes. She was the dumb chick I occasionally snickered at but basically she was of no interest to me. However Kim, like Rachel and Emily, was an imprint and if no other truth of the pack holds up, imprints are loved by all. It is an unavoidable fact of pack life. I couldn't recall five words I had spoken to Kim but when I returned to regular class after wolfing out, every offensive word uttered to her might as well have been said to me. We had no idea how much flack Kim was taking when Jared wasn't around, but I sorted that out quick, fast, and in a hurry, because I am neither sweet nor quiet.

When I emerged the inquisition had moved to the kitchen. Emily was at the stove and Rachel was grabbing stuff from the fridge.

Emily asked, "We're going to do you up a bit of breakfast if that's okay?"

"Sure," I joined Kim at the table. "Whatever you make is fine, otherwise it was going to be cereal."

"Are you sure? I could get dinner started." Emily pressed.

"Why bother? I don't know if Mom is cooking here tonight, Seth is going to eat at the Cullen's regardless," and I finished with a little whine, "besides I'm hungry now. I don't wanna wait for dinner."

Emily rolled her eyes, "Okay, I'll fix you some breakfast. You always were a little brat."

"And whose fault is that?" I gave Em a meaningful look.

"Are you implying that I spoiled you?" Em asked with mock offense while starting her kitchen routine. She had spent more time cooking here than I ever did. She could navigate Mom's kitchen blind-folded.

"No, I'm stating it as fact. Between you and Daddy it's a miracle I turned out so well."

"Whoever said you turned out well?" Rachel finally backed out the fridge with her arms laden with fixings for my meal.

"Well, Nate for one is very pleased that I'm a werewolf. Sorry, no, make that a shapeshifter," I corrected myself. Who was I kidding; I could hardly wait to gush about my Nate.

Rachel raised one eyebrow to smirk at me "Oh yeah? I heard he always wanted a dog."

"Who told you that?" Their mates weren't even in my pack, damn gossiping wolves.

"My lips are sealed. If I reveal my sources, they might dry up." Rachel looked at me smugly.

I stuck my tongue out at her. "Your brother is gonna get it."

"You started it, now finish it. Tell us about Nahuel 'don't call him Nate'," Emily urged me.

"Hell, why don't you tell me? I may have missed something and you seem to know everything." They were too well informed.

"Oooh tell us what it's like to imprint," Rachel begged.

"That's what you want to know? They tell you everything but you wanna know that?"

Rachel lowered her voice, "Yeah, babe, you were like so freaking beautiful," she adjusted her voice, "is not a description. I want to know blow by blow. Did you know when you first saw him?"

"No, not the first time. I guess this proves imprinting doesn't happen in wolf form." It was a topic we debated the possibilities of since there was no proof one way or the other. "I thought he was fine and all that, and I was worried about him being there when the fighting went down, but it certainly wasn't the 'forever moment'. When the Italian Vampire Mafia left all I wanted was to find my mom to let her know Seth and I were alright."

Imprinting was fascinating business and we adjusted our theories often. It was time to give them the Leah Clearwater version.

I wanted to make this good of for them. I licked my lips, cleared my throat and started a slow rhythm on the table with my hands. After the few repetitions I let my voice come out husky and mysterious. "His scent floated to me, a wisp of sweetness on the wind. I turned to catch my intruder and my eyes locked with his and ...and I died. My heart sputtered and stopped." My hands stilled.

"Leah and everything that was me ceased with the silence in my chest. Before I could panic, not knowing whether to expect heaven or hell, my heart started again." I started a faster rhythm with my hands, "My rhythm was gone, replaced. My heart beat to a new rhythm, his rhythm, and with every beat I felt his essence pulsate through my veins and carry to every cell of my body. I was made anew; Nahuel became my life, my new reality. He was the reason my heart beat again." It was a fairly good show in my opinion for an unscripted piece.

Kim's eyes lit up, "Wow, Leah you could be a poet."

"Or a con-artist," Rachel scoffed. "Your heart stopped beating? Really Leah?"

"I might be a little dramatic but that's what happened." It sounded far-fetched but didn't everything these days?

Ever the peacemaker, Emily interrupted, "Leah, you are such a ham, but you know Sam says every imprint is a little bit different."

"My dad says that too," Rachel gave some, but not much. "But come on, your heart stopped?"

"I guess you don't know this," finally I could tell them something they hadn't heard already, "our heartbeats are in sync." They looked skeptical, "It's true, Dr. Cullen said it's been happening gradually since I imprinted." Attaching Carlisle's name was like the final word for those of us in the know. It might be instinct to distrust vampires but come on; he had like a million years of experience of medical experience.

"That's some deep shit. Whose heartbeat adjusted to whom?" Rachel wanted to know; I bet so she could run home and tell her daddy.

"Mine adjusted to his, not that I would ever tell him."

"Why not? You should tell him everything," Kim asserted, "you know, to get started off right."

Rachel couldn't resist, "Oh, she got things started off right."

"Oh yeah, it was one hell of a start," I leered suggestively and we all giggled.

Emily put a plate of scrambled eggs with toast and jam in front of me before taking a seat at the table.

"You know how everybody has their very own imprinting theory?" We did enjoy a good game of imprinting theories. Kim's theory was that after eleven years of a one-sided relationship with Jared the imprint was her due. She prayed and the gods had finally blessed her. I often told her the gods just wanted to keep her out of jail for the stalking charge. Rachel's theory was imprinting was two-way and Paul was just as much her imprint as she was his. Her theory was, 'Imprinting, because no one else would put up with this crap.'

"Nate thinks I was made for him."

"That's so sweet." Emily didn't know my Nate evidently.

"That's not a figure of speech. He absolutely thinks I was made for him, like he very much thinks Bella and Edward made Ness for Jacob, like a honeymoon momento."

"I like that idea of that," Rachel pondered out loud. "It makes the whole child bride thing a tad less creepy." She paused and went on, "She is such a perfect little darling, it's rather nice to think she was made just for my brother." Rachel had been touched by Renesmee. It gets everybody, she takes all prisoners. I was willing to bet the vampire spokesman from the other day was planning to kill us all and take the baby. She probably wasn't in physical danger.

"I can't imagine my sister would like the idea of that." Emily stated reluctantly.

"Amelia should have thought about that before she married Earl." I reminded the table. One of our many theories was that seventeen year old Quil and three year old Claire were mentally the same age therefore they could mature together. However the prevailing theory was that karma is a bitch. My cousin Amelia, Emily's sister, married forty year old Earl when she was just nineteen. It was already in the cards for them to get paid back. Earl was in for a rude awakening.

Rachel rapped her knuckles on the table. "Leah, you haven't thrown us off the scent. We want to hear about him, you, and the all the juicy details." Trust Rachel to pin me down. A good round of theories usually distracted her.

Kim asked, "Leah, are you afraid he's going to bite you ...you know, like when things get hot and heavy? Jared bites me sometimes."

"TMI! I don't miss being intimately acquainted with you and Jared's sexual proclivities."

Kim continued to look at me pointedly. She used to be more in awe of me. I must have lost my touch. "Okay, I am _**so**_ not afraid of him biting me, it might be nice." I shrugged and smiled.

Emily started with a stammer, "Um, is he uh big?" Poor Em, trying her hand at what she thought was girl chat. She couldn't even make eye contact.

"He's my height, a little taller. Medium frame." I answered.

Rachel smiled slyly, "That's not the big she was talking about."

Well duh. "Oh, do you mean does he have a dick like a baseball bat?" I looked Emily in the eye waiting to see if I could make her squirm. She flushed darker, even better. Score. "He doesn't have the stuff of nightmares swinging down there if that's what you mean. He's a good, normal, no-stitching required size." It was uncomfortable knowing exactly what equipment their guys were working with, but brazen was the best tactic.

"That's where the magic comes in, how the hell do you fit those things inside?"

"You and Sam," Rachel paused then shrugged, I guess I wasn't the only brazen one around, "after he changed...you never did it?"

Emily averted her eyes, she knew about this already.

"Yes. Once. It was one of the worst experiences of my life. Painful. I tore and bled more than I had when I was a virgin. I was sore below and above where my rib was cracked. I tried to ignore the rib but I finally had to go to Mom for help. You know, Mom told me later that was why Dad finally had to tell her the truth. She taped my rib and saw the bruises all over me but she didn't ask me any questions. After she helped me into bed she asked Dad which gun she should use to put a bullet between Sam Uley's eyes. Dad wasn't too happy to find out Sam and I had a sex life but you all know Sue Clearwater does not play, so Daddy had to talk fast and tell Mom everything to save Sam. Daddy promised her Sam wouldn't touch me again. He didn't." It was just as well, my hoo-hah was traumatized and I think Sam was too. He never meant to hurt me; he just didn't know how to adjust for his strength or what to do with his new limb. He treated me like spun glass afterwards. It became one of those, 'been through so much together' incidents that made me love him more. Funny how that worked out.

"Once was more than enough for me. Hence the question, how?"

"It's the Vitamin D." Rachel stated with confidence, like she had been waiting for this exact question. "I think their semen has restorative properties."

"Bullshit, there is nothing restorative about a burning hot, sticky douche. Seriously, it was worse than phasing the first time."

"Leah, I hate to point out the obvious but you weren't Sam's imprint and that makes a difference." Rachel took some getting used to. She stepped on what used to be my most tender spot with steel tipped stilettos. Why hadn't Sam imprinted on me? What the hell was wrong with me? Why was I a wolf? Was I gay? Seeing thousands of versions of my one off dream of kissing Bella replayed nightly in the heads of a bunch of horny little boys had me questioning my sexuality. I had questioned everything about myself but in one moment Nate wiped all the doubt away.

"Don't look at me like that. It's not like its news to you. You have your own imprint now so you know there is nothing like it.

"I can't argue that. Nate is just amazing." Flashes of Nate's long wavy black hair hanging like a curtain around his face when he looked into my eyes while slowing working me toward an orgasm. The feel of his sweat slickened back under my hands, his smell, his sex filling me, leaving room for no other thought but him. Nate, Nate, Nate, umm Nahuel when I whisper it in his ear.

Kim's voice tugged me out of the third floor bedroom, "Leah, I think we should get to see Nahuel naked. It's only fair."

"What!" Emily asked.

"She's seen our guys naked; we should get to see hers." I wonder how Kim thought I should bring that about. _Nate, meet my friends. Shih, no talking, just take your clothes off and shake your ass a little bit. Ahh that's a good boy. Now go on about your business so we can talk about you._

"I'll pass," Rachel dismissed the topic as though my Nate wasn't worth looking at. I didn't want her to see him naked but she could at least act like she wanted to, it would the polite thing to do.

"You know Rachel, Paul is not the best looking guy in the world. He's okay at best."

She looked at me offended. It just wasn't realistic the way she saw Paul. He was worth looking at a second time but he was not the god Rachel thought he was.

"Seriously, he is not the best looking guy in the world, not even close." I insisted. Rachel didn't scare me anymore.

"He isn't," Kim agreed with me, her face going soft and dreamy.

"Oh, so you think its Jared?" Rachel asked Kim.

"Oh course its Jared; he's the cutest boy I've ever seen." Kim enthused.

"I guess Jared and Paul are okay for 'boys', but Sam is the best looking 'man' in this corner of the world." Emily got into it too.

We all gave her the look. I used to be in love with Sam but even I knew Sam was slightly above average in looks. It was his personality that was the draw. Sam was always, 'Sam the Man' Uley. Even when he was twelve you could see he was 'the man.'

"Come on Emily, you think Sam is that good looking?" I heckled her a little.

"Yes I do, and just because you have an imprint now let's not forget you used to think so too." Emily sassed me.

"I think not! I'm not blinded by the magic. Sam looks good for somebody you know but certainly not mmmm good. Besides you're all wrong, you just don't know it. Nate's the sexiest thing on two legs. You just haven't seen him yet to get the full affect of his gorgeous face, his aversion to shirts..."

Rachel interrupted me, "You have to do better than that. They all have an aversion to shirts. I keep one for Paul in my purse."

"Oh my god, you too! I keep an extra shirt for Jared in my handbag!"

They both looked at Emily. "Sam keeps a full change of clothes in the truck, but I don't carry clothes in my bag. He's not a baby."

"Hey you asked about my Nate," I turned the attention back on me, where it belonged. "I can do better than shirtless; my Nate has thick, long wavy hair," I taunted them with the hair. Sam's whole pack wore buzz cuts. These girls wouldn't be running their fingers through hair for years to come. "Now know how wrong you truly are."

Rachel shook her head in mock sorrow, "Poor Claire. She's gonna grow up thinking Quil is the standard of male beauty." We all had to laugh. Quil was fugly like the bottom of a foot.

"It's gonna take her a whole life time to swallow that lie. It's a good thing they started early."

"So when do you think we'll get to meet him?" Kim asked.

"I don't know. He's not allowed on the reservation. You must have known this. You know everything else."

"Yes, we knew, but last I checked we are allowed _off _the reservation," Emily reminded me.

"By all means, I will invite you to that house that I don't live in to meet my vampire boyfriend who gave up people, what, like last week or something." My sarcasm faltered when I ran out of data.

"You don't know that either do you?" Rachel had me. I didn't know the last time he dined on human blood.

Emily caught my eye. "Lee, why won't you talk to him?"

I wanted to blame being in a house with hypersensitive ears all around. I wanted to make a joke about the sex. I wanted to blow it off with 'it's just been three days' but Emily used her most effective weapon on me, kind concerned eyes that saw through all the bluff and bravado.

"I'm so so scared. What if he gets to know me and all my ways and he doesn't like me? What if he rejects me? What if he doesn't want me? What if he leaves?" I was so afraid I wouldn't survive if he left and I didn't want to give him any reason. Nature had found me lacking once, what if it happened again?

Emily reached out to hold my hand. She understood the fear of rejection. She fretted that one day the magic would wear off and Sam would no longer want her, his unchosen mate.

Kim sucked her teeth with uncharacteristic attitude and Rachel exploded.

"See, that's the problem with you wolves. How many times do we have to tell you? Let me say it slow, the imprint goes both ways. He wouldn't leave you anymore than you would leave him. He doesn't want to leave you. There is nothing you could say or do to change that. It's the same for us." Rachel didn't understand what it was like to imprint, she just thought she did.

I guess I looked unconvinced, "Didn't he seek you out? He smelled you coming; he said you were magnificent like you were at the confrontation." Kim and Emily nodded backing Rachel up. They may as well be a part of the pack mind too; they might know more than I did. "He recognized you before you recognized him. He feels it too."

I couldn't totally ignore Rachel. Sam was a solid kinda guy, the exact opposite of his worthless dad. I think he could have made any woman a good husband. I wasn't biased; he really was one of the good ones. Jared too, he was cute and smart, a good catch. Paul was a different story; jerk was his defining characteristic even before phasing. After phasing he became an angry jerk. Rachel had worked her butt off finishing college early, earning a sweet entry level position in her field plus she had a boyfriend who adored her. She turned her back on it all after a single walk on the beach. She didn't have any history with Paul before that day. Paul wasn't as much of a jerk since the imprint but he was still Paul and she loved every bit of it.

Maybe she felt something, but it wasn't like the complete invasion of the imprint, maybe it was 'imprint-lite'. "I'll give it some thought." I said to placate her.

"Whatever!" Rachel threw her hands up in the air.

I heard Mom's car approaching. I guess Chief Swan would be here soon too.

Emily pleaded with me, "Listen to her Lee, Rachel's right. Do you remember the first story of an imprint? The Third wife? She sacrificed her life for Taha Aki to give him a fighting chance. What does that tell you? It's no ordinary love; we aren't with them just because we can't get rid of them."

"Exactly!" Rachel was passionate, "Our culture, like so many others, is centered on the male. We don't remember the Third Wife's name but if her thoughts were recorded you would find out she was forever changed by the imprint as much as any wolf.

Mom walked in amidst our debate, "Hey ladies. I'm not surprised to find you here. Are you playing a game of theories?"

"Pretty much Miss Sue." Kim filled Mom in.

"Leah, are you still sticking to your theory that everything is Bella's fault?" Mom shook off her coat and hung her keys and purse by the door before collapsing in a chair at the table.

"Aunt Sue, do you want anything? I can put on a pot of coffee?" Emily offered.

"No, I'm fine. I won't be here long; Charlie and I are going over to the Cullen's in a few."

"Mom! You didn't come check on me the whole time I was there but you're going to keep an eye on Charlie?" Mom had me committed to Vampireland and fled.

"First, watch your tone. I called several times but you were always sleeping. When I stopped by yesterday same thing, you were napping, as Esme delicately put it. Emmett said you needed several naps everyday right before Bella cuffed him on the back the head. Seth told me you were fine and I see Carlisle at work every day. I had no worries.

"Sorry, Mom. I just hadn't heard from you that's all." I wanted no part of a discussion involving the allusion of sex with my mom in the room. My mother knew this.

"So did you have a good time," Mom paused a few seconds, "visiting with the Cullens?" If you didn't know Mom as well as I did it would be hard to tell that she was just fucking with me.

"It was okay, I kinda got used to the smell."

"Since you blame everything on Bella will you be thanking her for Nahuel?" Mom asked, taking a dig at my favorite theory of all.

My mantra was, 'It's all Bella's fault'. Everything that had gone wrong in my life could be traced back to her. Sam's disappearance or the beginning of the end as I called it could be traced to right after Chief Swan came over to our house a hot mess because his daughter ran off back to Phoenix. Daddy and Billy plied him with beer and played seemingly everything in Daddy's blues collection. Both of them assured him that he hadn't done anything wrong and Forks was a great place to live. He got so wasted he spent the night on our sofa. At the time, I was vaguely irritated with the girl I could barely remember for being such a rotten ungrateful daughter but I could understand the urge to break out of this dull little place.

Now I knew vampires were all over these parts hunting _her_. I figured one came through our territory and Sam's instincts reacted. Wolfing and imprinting go hand in hand so of course Sam had to let me go in the shittiest manner possible to be with his Emily natural mate.

I was just gaining some ground from losing my two best friends to each other when I lost my daddy, my one constant source of unconditional love. I heard my mom say, "Carlisle Cullen could have saved him." Billy argued, "Sue, you don't know that." Mom's voice was in complete control when she answered him, "Yes I do, and I have seen him do far more in worse situations. He could have saved my Harry." Those words penetrated the grief and stayed with me even though I didn't really know who that was at the time.

Then I phased something I could easily put squarely on Bella's shoulders. Vampires were dining, buffet style, in our territory and we Quileutes couldn't phase fast enough. It wasn't long before I found out who and what Carlisle Cullen was and eventually through Jacob I found out why he wasn't there for my Daddy. He left the area with his whole family in an effort to _save _Bella Swan. My daddy was dead and it was Bella Swan's fault. I was miserable, I didn't have _my_ Emily, I didn't have _my_ Sam, I had lost _my_ daddy and I was a barren freak of nature. My life was gone, Bella Swan destroyed it.

"Uh, no, I think not. I'm still a werewolf. I won't be thanking Bella for anything ever."

"Girl please, you would have never met Nahuel if you weren't a wolf. Well, it's possible you would have met him, it's just that he would have killed you." Rachel pointed out. "A real wham, bam thank you ma'am."

It was pointless to argue that having a man wasn't the sum of my being. I had something more, I had an imprint. If he wasn't the sum of my being he was at least fifty-one percent. The other forty-nine percent was starting to yearn for him. It had been hard enough falling asleep despite how tired I was when I made it home this morning. It had taken no time to become accustomed to having him around.

"By that same token all of you should be writing Bella thank you cards. Get your pens out; I will be going over there pretty soon."

"That's your theory, not ours." Emily stated. "I'll be heading home in a few minutes. Dinner time and all. So Leah, what are you two going to do? Are you staying here or moving to wherever he's from?"

"We're staying put. I tend to believe Nate when he says other vampires will be exploring this area, either curious or looking for a fight. I can't go now." I looked into the faces of my loved ones; I had a duty to keep them safe.

"Where are you guys going to live?" Kim asked.

"I don't know yet. Nate said we must have our own 'dwelling'. He totally talks like that. I certainly don't make enough...Oh shit! My job! I forgot my job! I haven't been and I haven't called." I worked part time at the little gift shop at the resort on the reservation. I worked the hours from right before check out to shortly after check in, easy hours. I slept late in the morning and got off fairly early in the day.

I left my mom and the girls at the table and went hunting for the cordless phone. It turned up in Mom's room. Late night Charlie calls? Hmm. I called from there for the privacy. It took no time for the manager to gleefully inform me that my double no call no show was job abandonment. He was triumphant in his victory of getting rid of me without having to fire me for my general bad attitude. I told him I had been sick but Bob responded with, "Everybody knows you were with your new boyfriend so don't try that. I hope he improves your attitude Ms. Clearwater but I am not willing to risk it. Goodbye." I was dismissed. Damn.

How did everybody know I had a new boyfriend? Boyfriend was such a lame word to describe my Nate but that wasn't the issue at hand. I would argue semantics with myself later.

I went back into the kitchen. "I don't have a job and according to Bob, everybody knows I have a boyfriend."

"This is true. I think Delores," Mom referred to Sam's mother, "took out an ad to announce it. She didn't really but might as well have. She has made it her business to let people know you moved on." Delores, the mistress of misinformation was at it again. She knew about the pack and took it upon herself to feed the stream of gossip in diversions away from the obviously strange fact that many of the young men grew several inches, bulked up, aged about ten years and ran around half clothed while following her son's lead. A few well placed words about Sam losing his track scholarship and people were off in a steroid gossip frenzy. She was that good. Sam never even had a track scholarship, it was purely academic. Delores' motor mouth was an amazing asset in keeping the secret.

Sam was her only baby so naturally she wanted to stop the negative attention he got for dumping me for Emily. People talked and Sam heard almost every word and it hurt him. He came between those Clearwater girls and it just wasn't right. Delores put it out there that Sam had been in love with Emily for ages and that after his near death experience he couldn't live the lie with me anymore, he wanted to be with his true love. That romantic claptrap helped deflect some negativity but my obvious broken-heart, and I admit I played it up at times, kept some hearts cold on Sam and Emily too for that matter.

"I don't think that was wise, people will expect to see said boyfriend but he can't come here." I paused hopefully, "Can he Mom?"

"No," She spoke firmly. "He can't." You couldn't accuse my mom of being wishy washy. "I'm not opposed to him coming onto the res, he's not a newborn, he obviously doesn't kill every human he approaches but I don't get to make that decision alone."

"I'll work on my daddy," Rachel volunteered.

"And I'll work on Sam," Emily would have my back.

Kim exclaimed. "Don't look at me. I don't know old Quil like that."

"The right pair of short shorts and that old dog might promise you anything," Rachel joked.

"I know right?" I looked at Emily. "You remember how he used say, 'You gonna make this old man have to go somewhere and sit down'?" We laughed. "It took us months to figure out what he meant."

"He said what?" Mom looked around at us. "And you didn't see fit to tell me about this. I ought to wring his old neck. I wonder how his wife, may she rest in peace, put up with him?"

It was going to take an act of congress to get Nate onto the res so there was no point in asking Mom if we could come shack up in her house. What to do? What to do?

"I really have to run now, if I hear about a job, I'll let you know." Emily stood first. "In the mean time don't stress too much, we'll figure something out."

"I'm surprised you were able to stay so long, I expected to hear howls or cell phone rings by now." I was on my feet ready to give my remaining guests the boot. I loved them but my skin was crawling from missing him, it literally craved his touch. I rubbed my arms to soothe myself.

"Paul's coming in this direction right now." Rachel paused, "I would say half a mile out." She said the pull was magnetic but I had never seen her gauge it like GPS before.

"Jared is too, I bet they're together." Kim got her backpack and followed Rachel out.

Emily gave me a hug and we walked to the door holding on to each other. "Please, don't worry too much. Everything will work out for you. It has too." She was giving me a final hug when Sam's truck pulled up.

They left in quick succession. Jared and Paul were together as predicted. Maybe I needed to listen to the girls; imprinting was evidently as accurate as Lo-Jack.

**A/N My Beta is on vacation but the next chappie is pretty much ready. If you wish to read the unbeta'd version check it out on Menage a Twi, the fanfiction group and the discussion is called Lemon Prints, the title is a carry over from when I was sketching it out in google docs.**


	7. Chapter 7 That's Me

**A/N:** Thanks for the beta work Ashtwi.

I posted before my Beta was done so any and all remaining errors are my sole responsibility.

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Twilight or its characters. If I did you would have seen me on the black carpet at the premier.

**Chapter 7 That's Me**

Charlie started his version of the inquisition when I hopped a ride with him and Mom to the Cullen house. He made eye contact in the rear-view mirror. "So Leah, your mom tells me you have a new boyfriend? A visitor to the Cullens?"

"Yep." I popped the 'p' but smiled at him nevertheless. He was used to my surliness, not my smile. I think the combination confused him, he didn't say another word. It's a good thing Forks didn't have much in the way of crime; Charlie was not cut out for investigative work.

Mom had no qualms taking Charlie over to the Cullen's with a new vampire in the mix. She had more faith in Nate's control than I did, but mom was way smarter than me. When daddy died I resented her dry eyes and cool rational manner. I on the other hand, screamed, cried, and pitched a fit until I finally went over the edge and turned into a giant wolf. Now I tend to think mom's way of coping was infinitely superior.

It was a record breaking trip to the house, meaning I don't think the ride could have taken longer. The chief strictly observed the speed limit in the most tedious manner possible and the car conversation was lacking something...words. Words would have helped a lot. How much time did mom and Charlie spend being silent with each other? The lack of stimulation added at least an hour to the trip.

I considered asking him to pull the car over. I could walk faster than this but I had chosen my clothes with care. The blue skirt and a pale yellow blouse, i.e. job hunting clothes, were some of the very few nice things I bought since the furplosion. The rest of my wardrobe consisted of dollar store dresses and indiscriminate thrift shop finds. Clothing had lost its appeal it when it became disposable. I hoped Nate appreciated the effort.

Couldn't Charlie speed up a little? Was he afraid the town's other squad car would pull him over?

My nerves were humming when we finally turned off the highway onto the driveway. The last few days didn't seem quite real; could this all have been a dream? What if I saw him and he wasn't my imprint after all? What if I had just been really horny from my long dry spell? What if he was over me? Why had I stayed away so long? He could have left and gone back home. I didn't even know for sure where he lived. All I knew was South America and that's not an address. I contemplated kicking the back door open as when we slowed even further on the winding drive to the house. I was sure I could do it if I got the angle just right.

Swiveling in the seat I lined my right leg up with the door when Mom ordered in the same breath, "Calm down back there and Charlie speed up, please." Charlie did as he was told; he was wonderfully obedient. I hoped I possessed half of Mom's man training skills.

When Charlie opened the back door I rushed into the house without knocking. Where was my Nate? I didn't see him in the assembled company downstairs. Why had he not come to greet me? Didn't he miss me at all?

"God, look at her. Does she think we ate him?" Rose could say whatever she wanted, I needed to see Nate. His scent led me up the stairs.

"Nate!" My emotions where all over the place as I raced up the second flight to the third floor. In the back of my mind I knew if I just calmed down the imprint GPS would kick in but couldn't. The need to see him was stronger than anything.

"Yes, Beautiful." The world's loveliest voice came from behind me. I whirled around and threw my cool points to the wind as I hurled myself at him. He staggered on the landing but didn't fall under my weight as he caught me.

My legs were wrapped around him and my head was nestled against his shoulder in our standard greeting pose. He was real, and still here, and still mine.

"You missed me." Nate stated as he shifted my weight to carry me up the stairs.

There was no denying it. "Yep. Did you miss me too?" I nibbled at his jaw line as he moved quickly but carefully to our room.

"No, the day was rather full."

"Let me down." I pushed against him slightly. "My mom and Bella's father are here. It would be rude if you didn't go downstairs to greet them." I didn't care over much about rudeness, but I was slightly hurt that he didn't miss me like I missed him. One day we would have to discuss the art of the polite lie.

"My mom and Bella's dad are something of a couple," I explained quietly.

Nate matched his volume to mine. "Your mother is not observing a year of mourning for your father?"

I gritted my teeth. It aggravated me that Mom and Charlie were already an item. It didn't seem fair to my daddy's memory but me having qualms was one thing; it was another to have someone else, even my imprint question Mom's behavior. I did cut him some slack for being my imprint so I didn't give him the standard, 'Mine your own damn business' response.

Instead I said, "It's not like they have already married. Charlie was very supportive of Mom when Daddy died. Then when Bella changed and Charlie had to become accustomed to the all new world of myth and monsters, Mom kinda held his hand. They have been supporting each other." Explaining to Nate forced me to see the situation more objectively. "There is also the fact that Mom is a natural caregiver. She _needs_ to be taking care of somebody. Seth and I don't require much care but Charlie laps it up." I didn't come up with this on my own. Mom told me she needed to be needed and Seth and I didn't need her anymore. I had argued halfheartedly but Mom's long hours at the hospital had forced us to become fairly independent.

"My eldest sister, Lucia, is like your mother; it can be bothersome. Do you expect them to marry?" Nate was being rather chatty, for him.

"Yes, but no time soon. They are both so steady that I don't see this being a flash in the pan but they won't rush it either. Charlie will be good to my mother and I think they will be happy together." Talking to Nate made me feel better about Mom's relationship. It wasn't like she hadn't known Charlie forever and then some.

"So Bella will be your sister?"

"What? No! Why?" I forgot to be hushed.

"I need to understand my new family circle. Carlisle suggested that I question you to get a better understanding of this new life I am to take on. Your family will be my family. If this man is to marry your mother I want to be respectful of the connection." Nate's logic was killing me.

"Don't jump the gun they aren't married yet." I left it at that and finally we descended the stairs to join the group downstairs. The guys- Jacob, Quil, Embry and Emmett were gathered around the TV playing video games... again. Mom and Charlie were nestled on another sofa with Nessie on Charlie's lap as Edward and Bella hovered nearby.

As always, I commanded attention by coming into the room. By smirks and raised eyebrows the guys let me know they knew Bella was my sister.

"Charlie, I would like you to meet Nahuel." Our clasped hands declared the relationship. "Nahuel this is Charlie Swan, he's Bella's father and the Police Chief of Forks."

Charlie made to get up but it seemed he couldn't bear parting with his grandbaby that long, so he remained seated and extended a hand instead. "Pleased to meet you, Nahuel. I didn't catch your last name?"

I cringed instinctively expecting Nate to say I didn't throw one. "Mapuche. Nahuel Mapuche." I recognized the name of his mother's people.

"As I said, it is nice to meet you. I heard you were from South America, but never specifically where?"

"My family origins are in Argentina but my aunt and I have moved around quite a bit. Most recently she and I lived in Cayenne in French Guiana, but we have lived in Buenos Aires and Rio de Janeiro and a few small towns you would not be familiar with."

"I don't mean to keep you standing son, pull up a chair and have a seat." Charlie said in a code that meant the grilling would continue. It wasn't like Charlie to talk, much less ask questions, but if I thought he would make the world's worst detective I was wrong. I made eye contact with Edward and 'asked' what was going on. Charlie didn't want to be told anything and he sure as hell didn't seek information. Edward returned my look and nodded a 'be cool, we got this' nod, at least that's what I assumed he meant and heck he nodded to that as well. Nate sank gracefully to the floor taking me down with him.

"So you lived with your aunt. What about your parents?"

"My mother died at my birth and she would never say who my father was. My aunt has always taken care of me," Nate supplied readily.

Charlie asked question after question. I don't think I had ever heard him talk that much at one time that didn't involve a fish that got away. He wanted to know everything about Nate, his age, did he finish school, what was he planning on doing with his life, did he play soccer, and a plethora of minor details. Finally he wanted to know what brought him to the area. Nate's responses flowed naturally. He was 19; he had finished school but was postponing university. He would pursue a degree in business but he wanted to see more of the world before choosing a career. He played soccer only a little but usually cheered for Brazil. I was tense throughout the whole ordeal and wanted to tell Charlie to quit it before Nate said something Nate-like and offended him but I managed to stay silent and held Nate's hand giving him what support I could.

"My aunt once heard that my father may have been one of the indigenous people of this region. She and the Cullen's have mutual friends so we came on a visit with them, however they departed a few days back and my aunt returned as well. I do not expect to find my father for I have no idea of his name or even his tribal affiliation but I would like to learn about my roots." At no point was he at a loss, he lied smoothly, Cullen-style.

Charlie stopped questioning and seemed to chew over Nate's answers. I suspected he knew it was a crock. He gave Nessie a quick kiss on the cheek before standing and setting her on her feet. "Go get your dollies to show Grandpa. I need to step outside and talk with Leah's new boyfriend."

Nate respectfully followed Charlie to the door. Again I looked to Edward asking 'was this a good idea?' Bella seemed be on high alert too and ready to panic. Again, Edward nodded, but I felt better when I saw Jasper and Emmett leave the room almost too fast for me to see. They would be watching out for Charlie and my Nate could take care of himself. They didn't walk far, just a few feet from the porch. I listened shamelessly to the conversation.

Charlie started off, "You may not know this but I've known Leah since before she was born. She is the daughter of one my closest friends, Harry. He passed away just a few months back." Charlie stayed silent for a moment and I could hear him put a hand on the roof of the squad car. "She was the apple of her father's eye. I don't expect you to know how much that means but I'm a father so I do know just how much he loved that girl. She's had a rough time of it lately. Real rough, she's been hurt pretty bad. I'm not trying to take the place of her father, but I think it's best to let you know to be careful of her feelings. She is not without friends and if you trifle with her there will be consequences. Do you understand me? I _will_ fuck you up."

Oh my god. In almost twenty years of Charlie hanging out with my dad fishing and drinking beer, or watching sports and drinking beer, or just drinking beer, I had never heard him drop the F-bomb. I was...I was touched.

I shared a look with Bella. This was out of character for Charlie. Bella was looking at me too, however she seemed slightly irritated. I figured Charlie was making up for not asking pertinent questions like "Are you dead?" with Edward.

"Understood." Nate answered but didn't sound offended. So far so good. "The concern you have for my Leah is very much appreciated." Nate broke pattern from the smooth facade of earlier and sincere Nate shone through. "I expect you will be just as careful with Leah's mother. If you hurt her..."

I cleared my throat quickly and loudly causing Nate to pause. Thank goodness.

Nate edited his statement, "If you hurt Leah's mother Leah will fuck you up, I think she would prefer it that way." Well that didn't work. I smiled uneasily at my audience. Although Bella had given up trying to talk to me she laughed and mouthed 'nice' at me. At least she wasn't offended.

"Fair enough, son. Could you send Leah out?" Charlie asked/ordered Nate.

This was not good. I waited for Nate to come into the house before I could go see what other new words Charlie was using.

"You asked for me?" I asked briskly.

"Leah, do you know what you're getting into here?" Worry was evident in Charlie's voice and quickened speech. "I've known you your whole life and I would like to think if anything had happened to me your father or Billy would have done the same for Bella. Do you really know what you are getting into here?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Just about everything I see is not what it appears to be and the same goes for that young man in there. I might not be able to protect you, but I want you to take some time and question this road you're starting down. You don't need to rush into a relationship. Impulsiveness in love rarely works out in my experience."

I looked Charlie in the eye. We had never conversed like this before. He awkwardly asked me about school or work and I gave him canned or monosyllable teenage responses depending on my mood. We had never talked as adults.

"I know what I'm doing. Nate is ...," I couldn't very well tell him about the imprint even if it would put his mind at ease. "Nate and I are...attached. It's something I can't explain, but we are meant to be...like Sam and Emily." I gave the first name of an imprinted couple I could think of. Anybody with eyes, including me, could see Sam and Emily were meant to be together. Bad example.

"Now Leah, I know you were messed up pretty bad about that thing with Sam but you don't need to hook up with the first pretty boy you come across to..."

"He is pretty isn't he? His skin is so smooth and even, I bet he never had a pimple in his life." I interrupted Charlie, trying to resume a natural comfort zone where I could be a teen and Charlie could be one of the dads.

"I suppose so Leah but looks don't mean much, if anything..."

It was time to grow up. I straightened my back from the instinctive sulky slouch and met Charlie's eyes again. "Look Charlie, I don't know how much he cares about me but for my part there can be no other but him so I have to take the risk. I have no choice."

"You always have a choice."

"No, I don't." This conversation would be so much easier if Charlie didn't insist on sticking his head in the sand. "It's not like dating. _It's different_." I threw my hands up, curled like claws in the worst kitten-wolf pose ever, desperately trying to convey a signal to Charlie so he would know it was all connected. Why yes, I did feel stupid.

"Oh," He looked at me strangely but with understanding, "Okay. Does he at least make you happy?" Charlie's eyes were pleading with me to lie if I had to, thankfully I didn't have to.

"Very much so." I set some of his fears to rest. "Just so you know, Billy did try to do what you're doing now. He tried to warn Bella about the weird stuff, but we are bound in how far we can go." Sisters tattle right? Charlie eyes widened slightly at that but it was his only reaction. I guess he knew how stubborn his daughter was.

"Then I guess that's all I can do. If you need me, you let me know." Charlie's gruffness signaled his return to form.

"Thanks Charlie." I gave him a quick awkward hug. He returned it in the same manner, giving me a quick pat on the shoulder.

We walked back into the house together to a slightly changed scene. Nessie had an assortment of dolls; baby dolls, Barbies, porcelain dolls and rag dolls that Charlie had given her for Christmas arrayed in the floor around her. She fumbled with them quietly on the floor. She was clearly confused as to what the dolls were supposed to do. Jacob was watching with a pained expression. He didn't know how to fix this for her. As much as I wanted to just crawl into a cocoon of Nate, I couldn't ignore the little girl in the floor.

I went to her, settling on the cool hardwood floor. I chose one of the two Barbies in the collection. The doll's outfit was very 'lady of the evening' but who was I to judge. "Have you ever played dolls before?"

She placed her little hand on my cheek to let me 'see' she didn't know how to play dolls. The rules were a mystery. She envisioned a chessboard with each doll type having a specific role to play. She wasn't sure what had to be done to determine a winner.

"No, baby it's not like that at all. It's all about imagination. Let me show you." I was in my element. It took the distraction of boys when I was twelve to finally put my dolls away. "Every doll needs to have a name, but you don't have to be too fast naming your doll. Sometimes you need to play with them a bit to get to know them. This one," I held up my Barbie, "can be one of the mommy dolls. This one can be," I chose a baby doll, "her baby. Now you choose a mommy and a baby." She did as I asked but silently asked me how they could be mommy and baby since the baby doll was twice as big as the mommy. She was a bit literal minded but I explained and we went on. Nate came to sit beside me to observe the rituals of girlhood.

Nessie and I played in our strange quiet manner where I spoke and she touched me until Esme announced, "Dinner is served." I couldn't help but drop a kiss on her coppery curls as I stood up to join the exodus to the dining room. "We can play again another time okay?" She nodded and smiled while we put her dolls into a toy chest that was certain to be an antique worth more than my home.

"You two are in the private dining room again." Esme steered Nate and I to the little room we shared dinner in the night before.

"So what were you doing that prevented you from missing me?" I asked straight away as soon as I closed the door. The food was waiting on the table and Nate waited until he had seated me and settled into his own seat before answering.

"Creating my back-story, as you saw earlier. It was a lengthy process. I must have an answer to every eventuality, but it must be similar to the truth. Previously, when I had to interact with humans as though I was one of them, I relied on silence and short answers that provided no actual information. They convinced me that for the long-term that will not work and no matter how annoyed I may become I can no longer kill the irritant to resolve situation."

"Surely, that didn't take all day." I wasn't going to rest until he admitted he missed me at some point.

"No, not all day, just a few hours of intense instruction. Then of course there was another exam. I began to think that it is fun for them. I am like the dolls you and Renesmee played with. I have never been sick a day in my life and surely you are out of danger, yet each day they have a new query."

"So after the instruction and exams what then? Come on, babe, didn't you miss me at all?"

"How could I? Every other moment someone was lecturing me about you. The consensus seems to be that you have been hurt badly and if I repeat the transgression my life will be forfeit. All day it has been one person or another telling me, 'Be careful with Leah, she's been hurt' or 'if you hurt her you will have to answer to me.' Beautiful, you have been with me all day. Although it has been a very long day without your presence. People do not speak so freely to me when you are around. I believe it is your glares and scowls, I find them rather endearing and many times I longed for them."

I laughed out loud. He did miss me after all, in his own way. I quickly shoveled a forkful of Grandma Swan's stroganoff. It was as good as the guys made it out to be; I had my doubts since they weren't the most discerning critics. Their one major requirement was food should be dead before the first bite, and even then only when they were in human form.

"Who did you want me to glare at today?" I watched Nate pick through the noodles looking for chunks of beef.

"Bella and Edward got me first. Edward said I had imprinting completely wrong and I should not think of you as a possession. He said I had to be careful to not hurt your feelings. Bella said you had been burned by love before, then she assessed me and said, 'I think I can take you' to which Edward nodded. Jasper said your pain had been tremendous. Rose told me your attitude was improving but if it returned and she had to deal with it she would 'take it out my ass.' I believe that is a threat of violence. Esme and Carlisle in their turn had something to say about you deserving some happiness, but Carlisle did not attempt to threaten me. I do not think he has it in him. Esme did say, 'If you hurt Leah, you will have to answer to me young man,' which was rather more sweet than scary. Your other pack brothers however had no problem saying such things." Nate successfully separated his meal into edible beef and inedible noodles onto different sides of his plate.

"Come on, try the noodles, they're good. You won't get enough to eat if you pick over your food."

"I hunted earlier with Jacob and Renesmee." Nate's day _was rather_ full compared to my day of sleeping, chatting and getting fired. I would have to thank Jake later for getting Nate fed before perennial guinea pig Charlie came over. Nate examined one noodle speared on his fork. "Gray is an unappealing color in food."

"It's the sour cream. So Quil and Embry had a man to man to talk with you?"

"No, not them. It was Sam the other alpha and his, what do you call them? His back up dancers? Paul, the asshole and the other one Jared. They came to give me the routine as well, 'Leah's been through a lot and if you hurt her we'll take turns holding you down and beating you.'

I know the guys were trying to help but it made me nervous that all of this intervention could make Nate think I wasn't worth the effort. "I'm sorry babe, but I'm sure they meant well. I am surprised they came over. Of course that would explain why my girls had so much time to visit today."

"Your girls?"

"Yes, my friends visited me today. They are the imprints of the other pack, their mates. But I am sure my visit was more pleasant than yours. No threats involved." I teased as I took a sip of the red wine and wondered if Esme realized I was too young to drink and too unnatural to even get a buzz. The wine was probably "good stuff" but it really tasted like vinegar gone wrong.

"I believe they wish to protect you although they allow all of this vampire hunting." Distaste was evident in his tone. "Their threats do not bother me. I have no fear of them, however none of them will tell me anything. I ask, 'How was Leah hurt' and they say I must ask you. I cannot understand why they insist upon referring to this 'hurt' if they do not wish to talk about it. I would rather they chose silence instead. If this incident in your past is something you wish me to know about you will tell me, will you not?"

Wow, that was a novel approach; he would wait until I volunteered. "Yes, yes I will."

"I do want to know so I should hope you want to tell me soon." It was too good to be true. Why wouldn't he want to know? Damn busybodies had been working all day at making him curious.

"It's a long story. What have you been told already? Did anybody tell you anything?"

"No, they were careful not to tell me anything of use. Sam did say he hurt you badly. Edward intervened and explained that it was not physical." Nate stopped picking at his food to pick my hand up from the table. "In time we will know everything there is to know about each other. I would not like to rush you; however I want to know more about this incident which defines you in their minds." Nate's warm brown gaze was compelling. He stroked the back of my hand with his thumb. If he wanted this I would give it to him. He continued, "A long story is fine with me. If I find that it does not hold my attention I will let you know. Okay?"

"Okay, fair enough." I would tell him. If I were him I would want to know. Of course if I were him I would have made somebody tell me. Naturally he didn't know a good tickling would make Jared give up state secrets. "Let's get an early start on patrol."

I finished my dinner and Nate was done playing in his. I grabbed my dirty dishes to return to the kitchen. Nate saw me and followed suit. I was still hungry though. Somehow Esme was seeing me as a girl before wolf and served me girl size portions. It was going to be a long night. I shuddered at the idea of having to hunt for palatable wildlife tonight with Nate present. I didn't want him to see me like that yet.

Esme met me at the kitchen door. "You didn't have to bring your dishes. We were just about to serve dessert. Won't you stay and have some? We made brownies."

Against the protests of my tummy I said, "Thank you, but no." If I stayed a moment longer I would back out of this talk. "Dinner was delicious, thank you Esme."

"It was my pleasure. I'll put some brownies aside for you if you want to stop by tomorrow." There she was, beaming at me and Nate, practically begging me to come back for some more down your throat Cullen style hospitality. Let it never be said the Cullen's made a guest feel unwelcome, trapped maybe, but never unwelcome.

Edward turned from the sink where he and Carlisle were playing at doing the dishes; the novelty of preparing meals and cleaning up had not worn off for them yet. "I packed some sandwiches in your bag." My stomach was grateful for his mind-reading. It probably took him all of six seconds to hook me up. "Alice didn't see anything today but she had some brief flashes which could indicate a nebulous decision. Be careful out there tonight and you know...howl if you need us."

He switched his focus, "Nahuel are you sure you are ready for another night of patrol?"

"Certainly. Leah keeps her pace slower for me and if not she is a good mount."

I groaned aloud at the horse reference. I'm a girl, not a beast of burden.

Nate reacted to my dismay. "I'm sorry, Leah, that was disrespectful. I meant 'mount' like a horse with a good gait, not 'mount' in a sexual nature."

"Thanks for clearing that up babe." Embarrassment was pointless, however sarcasm was always worthwhile.

"Thanks for the heads up and the sandwiches, Edward. Can you let Jake know we will be patrolling starting at the northeast line in human?"

"Sure, no problem."

Nate grabbed my bag, which I assumed he retrieved from my tree earlier. When we were out of sight of the house I slipped out of my nice clothes in favor of a "running" dress. The presence of the camouflage tennis skirt and matching top didn't surprise me; however the existence of high end camouflage tennis apparel was a bit of a shock.

I clasped Nate's hand as we walked to the northeast. "Two years ago I was a very happy girl. High school happy." I wish Nate had the same pop culture background that I did so I could just say I was the villain chick in a high school movie. "I was pretty, popular, and I had great boyfriend who adored me. Sam was that boyfriend."

Nate didn't say anything so I continued. "My high school life revolved around being Sam's Uley's girlfriend. Sam was well liked and respected by adults and kids. He could be a lot of fun," I took in Nate's disbelieving look, "No, really, he was fun. Easy to laugh and always ready to do something. People were drawn to him. He was a lot like my Daddy in that sense. This was before everything got weird around here."

"When I was a freshman and Sam was a sophomore his girlfriend broke up with him for somebody else. I was excited and made every effort to flirt with him. You know, be two inches from his face to make sure he knew I was interested. Sure enough he chose me over the other contenders. Even then I knew Sam chose me because his ego needed another girlfriend fast and there I was, crazy about him, and I know I am a good looking chick."

"You are indeed. Do go on." Nate was still interested. I could be sure that he would tell me the truth if I began to bore him.

"Anyway, when we were first together I was in awe of him but eventually we settled into a balance. I got used to him and he got to know me. He was like my best friend. He fit right into my family, in some ways he was like a brother to me. In our school, by the time my junior year rolled around, we were the power couple. Our table was the cool table, his friends and my friends were one and the same. My girlfriends back then were different girls than the ones who came to see me today." I explained to him. My life then and my life now bore no resemblance. Those girls had gone off to college and we didn't keep in touch much. "Life was good for me. Sam was going to college on a scholarship; I would follow him the next year. My biggest issue was prom. It seems like a million years ago."

"Then one day everything went off the rails. Sam was supposed to come over my house after school; he just had to mow a couple of lawns first. I waited for him, he didn't show. I thought he was probably mowing for someone else for free because he was always doing stuff like that. It wasn't unusual for him to be late if someone needed help he could give. After a while I got worried. I went over to his house, called his friends, went looking for him, and nothing. Daddy told me not to worry; he was sure by morning Sam would be home with a good explanation. He even joked that someone probably needed a kidney and Sam ran by the hospital to donate his. I called his house every half hour until Mom made me stop it. Even his mom didn't take it seriously. Like my Dad she was sure he was helping somebody and got caught up. My cousin Emily was the only person who took it seriously. We talked on the phone many times during the night. Morning came and he didn't turn up. A full search was launched."

"Can I safely assume this is when he phased into a wolf for the first time?"

"Yeah, but at the time he didn't know what was happening. I didn't know either for another year. It wasn't something our people, even the elders, were looking for. We had our legends but they were fading into obscurity."

"Sam was missing for more than two weeks. Only his mother and I still believed he was coming back. Most people thought he was dead. He was too good, too responsible, and too different from his dad to have run away."

"That incident changed my relationship with Sam. We cared about each other before but it went to a whole new level. Living on the brink of life and death changes everything. When he finally came back home larger than life but fragile, I think that's when we fell in love. In retrospect I wish we hadn't...it would have made the rest so much easier. Until then we were a couple of kids playing at couplehood but overnight we morphed into a unit. People said some awful things about Sam and questioned him about his disappearance and I was that chick who kept them at bay.

"I bet you were good at it. You can look rather menacing."

"I can be rather vocal too and I had to be. He had been through some sort of trauma and he couldn't tell me about it. I would be damned if anyone else was going to badger it out of him. I loved him and took care of him as best I could. I thought sooner or later he would get back to normal. Ha, it was only the beginning."

"Throughout Sam's whole disappearance my cousin Emily was my ace. She came down to see me; she wept with me and held me during those first few days. When Sam reappeared she was the first person I called to tell the news. Emily came down to help me dress for my prom. My cousin Em, my best friend in the world. We were raised as close as sisters."

"This sounds ominous." Nate dropped my hand to curl his arm around my shoulder.

"It was bad. Sam had seen Em a million times before but this time he imprinted on her. The wolf in him recognized his mate, just like mine recognized you."

"No, it was not your wolf nor was it his. You imprinted on me as a woman. Surely it was the man in him who knew his soulmate?"

"Hmmm, it's so much easier to blame it on the wolf but it's true we don't imprint as wolves." His profile caught my eye while I paused to consider his very valid point. The wolf had been a very convenient scapegoat. "It's still magical though." The wolf was off the hook but Quileute magic would still be taking the blame.

"He imprinted on your cousin. Did he claim her right away as I claimed you?"

"No, of course not. My whole family was present; that would have been really incredibly wrong."

"I do not think it would have stopped me. I have never felt a pull so strong; I doubt anything would have prevented me from claiming you. Did your cousin not experience this?" Listening to Nate made me realize that night could have gone so much worse. Walking with him in the cold night air, deep in the pitch black forest with his arm wrapped around me, I was complete. I couldn't imagine how Sam and Emily stayed apart as long as they did.

"She is attached to him beyond what is normal but you see both Sam and Emily loved me. Neither wanted to hurt me and I didn't know what had happened. I thought he was looking at me like that." More than a year had passed, almost two, but I would never forget what it felt like to see the promise of forever and have it snatched away.

Nate quickly snatched me into an unexpected hug and held me tight. "I am sorry, I wish there was some way I could have been there for you." He breathed in my ear and rubbed my back soothingly. My Nate knew just what I needed. He had seen my promise of forever.

We started ambling along again with his arm tucked around my waist and mine around his. "Sam showed a great deal of restraint in his pursuit of Emily. He muddled through weeks with me, trying to love me but finally one day out of the blue while we were watching a movie on my couch he told me it was over. I didn't take it well. I asked why and he told me, 'I'm sorry Leah; it's just that I love her so much.' I knew who he was talking about instantly. I said, 'but you love me'. He said, 'I do love you,' his pain was all over his face. I couldn't understand why he was doing this to us and said so. 'But I love her more than anything, I need her.' It was like a slap to the face, a hard slap." I leaned into Nate drawing on his strength as he instinctively pulled me closer right when I need it.

"Emily denied having anything to do with it. She was my rock over the phone but there was always some reason she couldn't come see me."

"She was trying to resist. Your cousin is stronger than I. She must be very loyal to you."

"She is loyal but I didn't see it like that, besides, it's the imprint we are talking about here. She refused his calls and of course he couldn't stay away so he started going to her house. Eventually I heard about it and called her to say she would have to choose between us. She pleaded that Sam just needed a friend to talk to and she wouldn't let it go any further. I was relentless; I said she couldn't be his friend and mine. I was such a brat."

"No, you were hurting." I wondered if Nate would always be on my side.

"I was hurting and it hurt even more when I didn't hear from Emily for two weeks. We had never gone much more than a whole day without talking. It was obvious who her choice was. The 'break up' with Emily hurt just as much, if not more, than the one with Sam. They both rejected me."

"The next thing I heard was that Emily had been attacked by a bear and that Sam was naked when he brought her from the forest. Everyone, me included was sure what they had been up to, to leave him naked."

"Em is my cousin and best friend so the Sam stuff aside I should have been there with her at the hospital. I should have been holding her hand. If the situation was reversed she would have done it for me. I went with my parents to the hospital to see her because Mom made me. Sam was there. Where else would he be? He was in terrible shape and it made me angry seeing how deeply he cared for her. My uncle, Emily's dad, wouldn't allow Sam in the room, he held Sam responsible for not protecting Emily. Instead of being a friend to Sam or to Emily... I upheld his rule. I purposely kept them apart. I didn't do the right thing. A part of me, a large part, felt like Emily's bear attack was comeuppance for her and Sam both. She was scarred for life and he was stuck with her. I knew him well enough to know come hell or high water he would never bail on her. I sat there in the waiting room watching him, ready to call security or Uncle George if he made one false move. It was all spite and all futile."

"Do bear attacks happen often around here?"

"Oh, I forgot you don't know this. There was never a bear, Sam injured Emily. He was still fairly new to phasing and he lost control for a split second. That's all it takes."

"What made him lose control?"

It was such a simple question. What pushed Sam over the edge? I felt a familiar ache in my chest threaten to overwhelm me. My feet stopped and I whimpered just a little making Nate again pull me fully into his arms. "Me." My voice hitched. "It was my fault. Emily chose me; she tried to reject Sam for me. She told him she couldn't do it to me. He had told her everything about being a wolf about the imprint, she knew, she really knew how deep it went but she still she chose me." I paused trying to keep it together to get the rest out, "Sam was upset, he yelled, 'This isn't about Leah.' Emily told him, 'Anything between us will always be about Leah.' He couldn't deal with it. He started trembling and Emily in her concern reached out to him. Sam threw up a hand to ward her off but it was too late his claws caught her on the face and ripped her flesh open all the way down to her hand. I've seen it so many times in Sam's head. He tried to block it from me but he worries over it all the time. It came in bits and pieces when he wasn't guarded but eventually I put together." I was barely audible, emotion choking my words out. I had seen it and heard it so many times. Emily's anguished voice saying 'always be about Leah' and Sam's claws tearing into her skin.

I didn't realize I was crying silent tears until Nate wiped them away, the pain had become that familiar. "Emily loves me, she loves me so much more than I deserve."

I tried to keep talking through the tears but Nate shushed me. He held me tight to his chest, his hands stroked my back so gently and I finally let it go. I didn't try to be tough; I didn't tap into the anger that had been my sword and shield. I didn't have to be Leah with a brave face. With his heart pressed against mine as we pulsated to the same rhythm it was not a connection so much as it was state of being. I was with my other half and there was no other way to be but all me. I let my sobs come for every time I saw the jagged scars marring Emily's beautiful face, every inch an accusation of my selfishness. Emily had never denied me anything whatever the cost to her and it damn near cost her life.

"Sshh Leah, its okay, baby. You didn't know." Nate held me tight and made soothing noises in my ear. Sobs wracked my body even harder. I didn't deserve his kindness and tenderness. I had been such an awful person. I pulled at him tighter trying to draw in the inner calm that always seemed to surround him. The hurtful thoughts wouldn't keep coming. I had been so self-centered that I never noticed that Em had always loved Sam. Heck I didn't even notice him much until she had a crush on him one summer. We had so much fun together playing his stalkerazzi. Her crush became my crush and although she was my best friend in the world I never even noticed that for her it was never a simple crush. Emily loved Sam when she was thirteen and she loved him still. I cried for the world of pain she had to go through when I pretty much forced her to be a part of Sam and Leah. I dragged her on double dates, group outings and I used to make him take me up to see her, and she couldn't escape even at home. She bore witness to it all; she knew every intimate detail of my sex life with Sam, the man she loved. Not by word or deed did she ever betray me, ever. For a few months I went through what she had endured for years.

Nate's hands worked a gentle comforting pattern on my back, stroking, rubbing, squeezing. Eventually I calmed down while breathing in his scent, in the cold of January he smelled like warmth. My hands unclenched from around his neck to thread into his thick hair bringing it closer to my face so I could breathe his scent in deeper. The pattern of his hands shifted, his strokes became longer, going past the small of my back to the top of my ass. My hips instinctively gyrated into him. With purpose my hands moved deeper into his hair to cradle the back of his head at just the right angle for a kiss.

I pressed my mouth to his, not moving, just holding his mouth to mine, drinking in his strength. Nate rained tiny kisses on my lips before pressing his lips to my wet cheeks. "You will never face anything alone again. Never." He feathered kisses on my closed eyes, my nose and cheeks, my chin, each kiss a tender promise. By the time he made it to my lips a new passion had been ignited. It wasn't desperate, fevered, fun, or like anything I had experienced with him before. His lips moved over mine gently seeking entry and I welcomed him tentatively, afraid to accept another man's promises.

Nate kept his pace slow; his hands skimmed the sides of my breasts, spanned my waist, and lightly trailed over my bottom. Could I rely on him like that? Never alone again? His kiss became firmer and his tongue invaded my mouth as the caramel taste of my imprint flooded my senses. My tongue slid against his, accepting his invasion, welcoming his possession. Never alone again? Did I even have a choice? All of my senses were in thrall of him. His firm length thrust against me and I strained to get closer. His hands began to knead my bottom and in less than a second I straddled his waist.

His hands were all over me, running up my thighs, the swell of my butt, under my shirt onto the skin of my back; the other skimmed along my ribcage to come between us to cup one breast, letting his thumb caress my hardened nipple.

I sighed against his mouth, "I need you now." I wanted him to chase all my inner demons away. His hands slipped beneath my skirt pushing it up around my waist. A quick rip removed my panties. He lifted me higher and I clung to him while he dealt with his jeans. He eased me down slowly and I whimpered, wanting immediate gratification. His head nudged my entrance. "Please, Nate," I sensed his hesitation and urged him to possess me. He eased me down slowly, pushing in inch by inch.

I held him inside, not moving, just contracting around him trying to draw him in deeper. His groan of pleasure laced with torment spurred me into action. I set our pace, sliding up on his full length and slowly welcoming each new possession. He whispered, "You're mine, now. My Leah, my beautiful, precious Leah." Nate stayed rooted firmly to the ground; he was my anchor in this world now. I reveled in his strength, his total possession. I rode him harder and faster, knowing I couldn't uproot him, he was my solid tower of strength. We shattered together.

I panted in his ear, both of us coming down from the incredible high of love making. Our breath puffed out visibly in the cold night air, our superheated bodies sweating despite the chill. Reluctantly I let myself slide off his body. I set about straightening his clothes and fastening his pants when he suddenly grabbed my face and kissed me hard and thoroughly. "My beautiful precious Leah, I will always, always be here for you." My heart soared; I hadn't been precious to anyone since my Daddy died.

I felt unburdened. I hadn't told him every excruciating detail but I finally willingly shared with someone the demons that haunted me. Sam hurt me, sure, and I was getting past that but I hurt Emily and until now it was my burden alone.

"It's time for us to patrol for real, babe." I had been slacking off long enough. I started undressing slowly and reluctantly. I noticed Nate's eyes riveted to me which encouraged me to go all the more slowly.

"Keep it up and patrol will face another delay," his voice was husky with intent. Being the ham that I am I jiggled the wonder twins at him and danced away a step or two. He laughed, a rare rich sound when suddenly everything shifted. His arm flashed out, slamming painfully into my side as he slung me behind him. The scent hit me and I tried to struggle free, afraid to phase with Nahuel so close. Two vampires, one male, one female came at us from opposite sides. A planned attack.

"Well what do we have here?" The female spoke tauntingly. They effectively had the drop on us with me in human form and Nate unwillingly to let me go. I couldn't call my pack, Alice couldn't see us. Mentally I yelled at Edward, hoping we were in his range.

"We were hoping for a good fight with the shapeshifters of this area. I have to admit I am a little disappointed to find the weak little half vampire and his next victim. Still, they should make us a good meal will they not, William?"

"One will, the other reeks." William evidently hadn't done enough homework. All I had to do was play my part. I hoped Nate would take the cue. I screamed my loudest damsel in distess scream. We didn't need much of a distraction.

A split second later William's head rolled in front of my paws as the stunned female vampire came face to with the shapeshifter she hoped for. I pummeled into her snapping my teeth into her shoulder and felt her rapier like nails peel flesh and fur from my ribs. I tried to use my momentum to take her down but she recovered too quickly, tucking into a ball and rolling out of my reach. Nate was on top of her immediately, together they rolled across the forest floor. Their bodies slammed into a tree knocking them apart. The female's head kept going but her body lay crumpled against the tree motionless.

I spit out a chunk of her shoulder and leapt to Nate's side. He was lying very still on his side. I nudged him with my muzzle and he flopped limply onto his back. I phased between a howl of anguish and a scream of despair "NATE!" I pulled his unmoving body onto my lap.


	8. Chapter 8 No, Really

**A/N:** Thanks for the beta work Ashtwi.

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Twilight or its characters. STILL. What gives with that?

**Chapter 8 No, Really?**

I cradled Nahuel's head against my chest trying to hear his heart beat but I couldn't be sure it wasn't my own. Focus was beyond me, all of my movements seemed sluggish; I couldn't move fast enough. I screamed out of sheer frustration. "Help! Help me dammit!" I could hear thunder in the forest. There was no attempt at stealth, my brothers were coming. Thank God they were coming; the sound took the edge off the hysteria as I tried to keep a clear head.

William's head rolled to his motionless, still standing body. I didn't know if I could put my life down on the cold hard ground to discharge my duty. "Hurry up!" I screamed into the night knowing my cries wouldn't be unheard.

"Come back to me baby! Please wake up!" Pleading with him I rubbed his cheek through the heavy weight of fog surrounding me. My limbs felt heavy, clumsy. I was unable to do anything to save my imprint. I would die right along with him; I couldn't exist if he did not.

Unable to take my eyes off Nahuel, I noted the arrival of Carlisle, Edward, Jasper and Emmett by scent and sound. Carlisle crouched beside me, putting his hand on my shoulder. I didn't bother to shrug against his chilly touch, it offered comfort where none was to be had.

Carlisle spoke in his gentle manner, "Leah. Leah, look at me." How could he be so calm? Didn't he see the world was about to end?

I lifted my head slowly to meet Carlisle's golden gaze, "You have to save him."

"He's fine, truly he is." Carlisle was gentle but firm.

"He sure as hell doesn't look fine!" My words came out with rather less force than I intended.

The packs arrived at the scene: Jacob and Seth from my pack and Sam, Jared, Brady and Colin from the other pack. Sam and Jacob phased with no thought of modesty as they crowded beside me to peer at Nate.

"He's just asleep Leah. His thoughts are consistent with deep sleep." Edward Cullen, walking MRI spoke.

"Then why won't he wake up?" I shook him gently hoping for some sign of life that those of us without superpowers could sense. "Please wake up." I pleaded desperately with Nate's limp body.

"This is how he sleeps. He was past due for a rest period but he couldn't bear the idea of you being alone on patrol. He's pushed himself too far but he's going to be fine." Edward's tone was soothing yet cocky and I longed to believe him.

Nate's words played back in my head, 'You will never face anything alone again'. I didn't realize he meant it in such a literal sense.

"So he's just tired. Are you sure he's gonna be okay?" It was hard to believe this was normal.

"It is normal for him. He wouldn't normally stretch his limits this far but what you see is only exhaustion," Carlisle confirmed. He gave my shoulder a quick, cold, gentle squeeze before getting to his feet. "I promise you he will be fine."

"Jake, you can't let him continue going on patrols. He's a liability we can't afford." Sam's grave bass rumbled in my ear.

My head whipped to my own alpha who simply nodded, considering Sam's point. Men are so dense, Nate might run with my pack but he didn't answer to an alpha. What were they going to do? Close the forest? I wanted to rip Sam a new one but that could come later. Nate was my priority now; I needed to get him off the cold forest floor. I adjusted my hold to stand with him when two hot hands pinned me back to the forest floor.

"Seth! Grab Leah's bag will you?" Jacob called out in a panicked tone. _Naked_. I kinda hadn't noticed. Seth tore himself away from the William and unnamed consort fire to toss my bag over. Jake poked in the bag delicately as though a stray tampon might attack, "Um Leah, what do you want to wear?"

Did he think I had a special preference for when I'm naked and surrounded by men and/or monsters? "I don't care, whatever, just grab the first thing." He held out the slim blue skirt from earlier. "That's not going to work. Get a dress, something loose."

Jake grumbled and went back into the bag. "Why didn't you just say that when I first asked?"

Sam fingered his chin and gave me that look, the look that said 'I really dodged a bullet; I could have been stuck with that crazy bitch. Thank the gods for Emily'. I assumed that's what the look still meant; he used to think it or a variation at least daily when I ran with his pack. He was sweet and kind at first but after my telling everybody how he never once got the hang of an unguided entrance his attitude changed. Still, I contend hoohahs don't move, they are remarkably stationary. Out of frustration I once offered to get him a flashlight and a compass. Trying to make him hate me didn't help me love him less, but it did decrease his guilt; it was a victory of sorts. The involuntary comparisons of his sweet wonderful Emily versus the mouthy bitch Leah did however make Leah all the more mouthy and bitchy.

Jake held up a dress for my acceptance. It wasn't ideal but whatever, I would take it. This situation was becoming more awkward by the second.

"That won't do Jacob." Jasper abandoned the fire to help intensify the weird. "She needs something she can slip over her head." Jasper took the bag from Jacob, "I'm sure Alice packed something that would work better." He gave the black dress Jacob was holding a look of dismissal. A fashionista's husband _would_ take dress selection far too seriously. To dial up the weird, after Jasper chose my dress he proceeded to dress me, pushing the dress over my head. "Now put your arm up. Now the other one. Sam, you or Jake hold Nahuel for a moment while Leah gets to her feet." Inner Leah was confused as to what the hell was going on, she wanted me to react but instead I complied docily. Inner Leah was so disappointed in me.

"We aren't sure but it appears to affect her too." Edward spoke to who knows who.

Sam took Nate from my arms which I guess was fair since he had already seen the goods. I laughed out loud at my lame mental joke. I was losing it. Did Jasper Cullen really just dress me?

"You're just a little disorientated. We'll help you back to the house." Edward was addressing me now; I was sure of it...almost. My dress fell beautifully to my knees. Kudos to Alice for knowing what to wear when you find yourself naked and surrounded by men at a vampire burning party.

The next morning I awoke in the golden bedroom that was beginning to feel more and more like mine. The trip back to the house last night was a complete mystery. Someone had put us to bed and thoughtfully opened the window letting in a pleasantly chilly breeze. Nate was next to me, curled on his side sleeping soundly. He looked rather sweet, not at all like the deadly killing machine I knew him to be. I ran my fingers over the smooth skin of his face, tracing each of his features before kissing his forehead, then the tip of his nose, and finally letting my lips linger lightly on his. I curled into him, hugging him tight and just lay there accepting that wake up sex was not on the menu this morning. Bummer.

I finally understood why Huilen had to stick so close all these years. Nate was completely defenseless when he rested; left unattended he was a vampire meal waiting to happen. The thought of a vampire finding him prone and unable to defend himself gave me chills and triumph simultaneously. Nate needed me, not that I did much last night, but still, it gave me a real purpose in his life.

I had to be thankful that he and I were still alive. There was no excuse for me to let my guard down. We would have to work in private time to talk some other way but I wasn't sure how. Privacy would never be had in this house where you couldn't hear a pin drop due to someone hearing it move through the air and intercepting it like an hour before it hit the floor.

UGH! This would be so much easier if he could come home with me. Mom worked and Seth went to school, immediately followed by his daily Cullen devotional time. We would have plenty of time to actually talk at my house; heck it was empty right now. I lay there thinking of new things to stress about. I needed a job. Nate needed a job. Would Nate ever fit in? If I stopped phasing could I have his baby? Was he even capable of fathering children? Did he even want offspring? If I stopped phasing who would keep him safe when he slept? Round and round the worry go round whirled in my head until I finally had enough.

I sprang from the bed, trying to escape my circuitous thoughts. I let my eyes caress my angel, his lips were parted softly and his inky black wavy hair fanned out on the pillow. My vicious sleeping angel. In the adjoining bathroom I showered and dressed from the magically bottomless bag. I choose the zip up dress Jasper rejected last night. When I returned to the room the bed beckoned, looking warm and inviting. I could climb back in, curl up beside Nate and wait for him to wake up but who knew how much longer that would be. He was dead to the world and I needed some answers.

I headed downstairs to find a know-it-all vamp who would give me the answers I needed. Tickles wouldn't work with then but I suppose I could threaten to never leave their humble abode...hmm, that might be playing right into Esme's hands though.

"Good morning Leah. Sleep good?" Jake was sprawled on the sofa watching television.

"Jake, do you ever go home? Yeesh, Nessie isn't even over here yet." Threatening to never leave wouldn't work. Jake never threatened, he just didn't go anywhere and everyone seemed fine with it except Rose but hell, she didn't seem fine with anything except Nessie.

Jake rolled his eyes at me. "I could say the same for you but I'm actually here for you this time. You know, keep an eye on you and your imprint, and make sure you guys are okay." Jacob straightened up on the sofa, sliding over I presumed to make room for me but I really needed to talk to a Dr. Cullen, any Dr. Cullen.

"I guess we'll be fine." Did he really want to get chatty now? I glanced around and listened for turning book pages or any sign that might be a Carlisle clue. "Hey, I was hoping to run into Edward or Carlisle. You seen either of them? I have a few questions."

Jake patted the empty spot on the huge white sofa; it was an order of sorts. Ungraciously I settled on the other end. "Ask me anything, we didn't talk about anything else when we came back to the house. Which reminds me, we need to cover a new rule. No sexing on patrol. It's official." Jake didn't slip into the treble, there was nothing he abhorred more than robbing us of our free will, but I would obey him nevertheless. "You let your guard down and that cannot happen again."

I nodded with understanding and a pinch of shame. "Understood. You...you aren't going to go along with Sam's demand about Nate are you?"

"Nah, of course not. Nahuel's not a liability; he's an asset to our squad. Sam's probably just jealous, ignore him. I'm your Alpha right? You can disregard him. Okay?" Jake flexed his shoulders instinctively bristling at the idea Sam had any authority over his pack. Take that Sam! My alpha was the coolest.

"Easily done," I nodded. "But I need to find out how often Nate goes down dead to the world and how long he's gonna be out."

"Every 14 to 21 days" Jake answered me proudly. "Told you, I got all the deets. You know I got your back. He's usually unconscious for ten hours, fourteen max."

"Do you want a cookie?" I arched an eyebrow at his stellar student performance.

"Sure, now that you mention it, chocolate chip or peanut butter. Do you want my info or not?" The cookie was sounding rather good right about now. Esme did say she would put some brownies aside for me. I might have to go sniff them out unless the black hole on the sofa next to me got to them already.

"I suppose you'll do since there's no one qualified around." I glance around hoping to spot a stray Cullen; I would even settle for Emmett right about now, he might heckle me but I could give as good as I got. "How long has he been up this time?"

"Qualified?" Jacob scoffed. "I know as much about half-vampires as anyone else around here. He was going on about 25 days this stretch. He was worn out but I guess too excited to sleep. The confrontation, meeting the Cullens and Nessie, the whole Leah experience, there's been a lot going on for him." Jake looked me directly in the eye, "Going forward I expect you to keep an eye on him and make sure he doesn't over do it."

Jake was really assuming his alpha mantle, making me somewhat proud to be his beta. "Done. Anything else I should know?"

"Probably." Jake shrugged and slouched back into the sofa, "That's the important stuff though." I struck pride from the record.

"Probably? What kind of answer is that?"

"Chill Leah, they kept talking and talking after that about brain waves, circadian rhythms, dreams - he dreamed of you by the way but Edward wouldn't say what, and they just kept going on and on. Did you want to hear all of that?"

"Jake, if it was about you, then no, but Nate's my imprint. If it were Nessie wouldn't you want all the details? Even the stuff you didn't understand?"

"Yeah, I would," he admitted sheepishly, or as sheepish as a wolf gets. Damn right he would. His head used to be full of Nessie's undecipherable medical details. He worried, we worried. We all Googled our asses off trying to figure out what no one could understand. Nate changed that for us too, in his brief testimony he removed the uncertainty from Nessie's future. Even on the field of battle we were all relieved.

I wasn't going to get anything else from Jacob. "Where are the Cullens anyway?" They don't make much in the way of noise but the house felt empty.

"Oh, do you care?" Jake teased me.

"Come on man, I need some answers."

"I know you're all a flutter with why little Nahuel is sleeping but you know there are more serious matters to consider."

My mind hadn't shifted from Nate and his well being since I woke up. "Like what?"

"Leah, two nights in a row you ran into two separate vampire attacks. Don't you think that merits some attention?"

Now that Jacob mentioned it, it did seem odd. I didn't really think we would encounter anything last night, or to be honest, even the night before. "Yeah. What gives?"

"Last night Edward... I wish that dude had a nickname... Anyway, Edward read some of the stuff going through the minds of the two you and Nahuel took down last night. Nahuel was right. They're coming for sport. The vamp world knows the pack is here and they have nothing better to do but come test us."

"Of course Nate was right." I hadn't even considered doubting him. Although I should question why he would expect such a thing to come to pass. "Hey, I thought those vamps got burned right away?"

"Pssh, what do you really remember? You were totally out of it. You fell asleep standing up right after you said, "Don't you dare put panties on me Jasper Cullen." Jake mimicked my voice as though I spoke in a really bad southern accent. Seriously, where did he come up with that crap? "They burned the bodies right away but Jasper and Emmett set the heads aside for Edward to 'question' or whatever it is they call it. Edward's concerned about what he saw. Most of them are out scouting the area beyond the normal patrol area now. Carlisle is at the hospital and Esme's around here somewhere. Bella and Ness are at the cottage."

I would wait for Edward or Carlisle to talk in more depth, besides, I had as much non-Nate time as I could stand for the time being. In the interest of being cool I managed to sit there another ten seconds fidgeting before I announced, "I'm gonna run up and check in on Nate. I'll be right back."

Jake looked incredulous, "Are you really gonna go peek at him, pull his covers up, and make sure he's still breathing?"

It sounded silly when he said it but since I was still going, I had to respond. "You do it for your imprint!"

"My imprint is an actual baby in case you hadn't noticed."

"Dude, maybe two months ago but she's like a regular kid now, just in case _you_ hadn't noticed."

"So? She's still just three months old, that's a baby no matter where you are. Nate's like a 150 years old, I'm sure he can sleep on his own."

"Nessie is almost four months old and if you hadn't noticed in Forks, four months is the new 5 years old. Besides, did you see him last night? He can't sleep on his own, he's far too vulnerable. So like I said, I'm gonna go check on my imprint."

Whirling on my left foot, I dashed up the stairs. Nate was sprawled on his back, still knocked out but he had at least moved. Seeing his chest rising and falling steadily made me feel better. The open window I was thankful for earlier now gave me a reason to worry; Nate's scent would carry on the breeze. Surely a vampire wouldn't be so bold as to come to the Cullen house. Alice would be on top of the whole peninsula today but she couldn't see the damn house with me and Nate here. But with the Cullens out there in the forest nothing would slip by, right? I mean, if it wasn't safe would Jake be here with Nessie at the cottage? But it's Jake, what does he know about these things? I looked out the window, over the river, gazing into the dense forest wondering what could be lurking out there. What the hell was wrong with me? I slammed the window down; tempest in a teapot averted.

Jake hadn't moved an inch when I plopped back down on the sofa. "Was your baby okay?" Jacob smirked at me.

I answered him as though it were a serious question. "He's good. I put his window down to keep his yummy smell inside," totally downplaying how worried I was about it.

"So, um Jake, do you ever think about Nessie growing up?" I returned to comparing my imprint to his. Jacob had seven years to wait on a proper imprint relationship. Nate and I had a thirty second courtship, maybe. Seven years was comparably a lifetime.

Jake swung his head around to look at me, "Yeah I thought about it, but I try like hell not to. It makes me throw up just a little in the back of my throat. Bleck! One day it's supposed to change but right now the idea makes me nauseous." Jake actually looked a little green around the gills. "For now Ness is my baby, I couldn't love her more than if I had given birth to her myself."

I rolled my eyes at that, talk about overstatement. Jake caught my look, "Don't laugh, it is like that and me giving birth is just as irrational as her being her in the first place. I love her with everything that I am but the idea that I will love her a different way...in a 'like that' way. Man, it creeps me out more than the Dracula twins. More than that time I walked in on my sister and Paul...Blech!" Jake shut up and collapsed back into the sofa with one hand on his stomach. I warred between offering comfort, which I didn't know how to do, or I could use this as mental leverage in my never ending campaign to get him to go back to school. I chose mental leverage. I was thinking of how to best phrase the nag while Jake blankly stared at the huge screen in front of us. Suddenly he blurted out, "_**WE WILL NEVER SPEAK OF THIS AGAIN."**_ Dammit, he went Alpha on me.

Okay, that topic was off limits for now and forever more. "Hey, do you think Esme would mind if I cooked myself some breakfast?"

"Nah, she wouldn't mind at all but she might be offended if you didn't let her cook for you." There was a hint of a warning in his tone.

"Why does it matter? It feels weird enough as it is, I don't want to mooch off them."

"Leah, have you ever asked any of them for anything ever?"

"Well, no. But still Jacob, it feels wrong."

"Let it go. You may as well. I'll let you in on a little secret." Jake waved me in close and put his lips practically on my ear. "Esme loves you."

"What the hell?" I jumped back.

"Be cool, it's not _like that_." Jake shuddered. "It's her vampire gift or weakness or however you see it. She loves us. My whole pack and my sister too." Rachel and Esme were something of shopping buddies. Rachel worked in Port Angeles and Esme shopped there frequently. Rachel, having balls of steel, made herself known to Esme. Paul didn't like it but that didn't hold sway with Rachel. She wore the apron in that family and with a wolf, she who held the spatula held the power. "She can't help it; we're here like all the time. She doesn't normally get to know people so well but she didn't stand a chance with us here so much. Tread carefully. Okay?"

My life was getting stranger in leaps and bounds. "Don't let it get to you, pretend they're family." Jacob stopped flipping through the channels settling on the History Channel.

"Really? Dude, the History Channel?"

"Sam rubs off after a while and this Navajo Code talker episode is pretty interesting." Jacob defended his viewing choice. The History Channel was Sam's network of choice and if he saw something particularly interesting he shared it with the pack. Enforced education. It gave a new meaning to my Grandma's phrase 'I'm gonna learn you something'. Sam learned us something all the time and not just which stroke Emily preferred, typically it was history. The Jake experience was different; I had a new found appreciation of fine automobiles and motorcycles to prove it.

"It never rubbed off on me and he tried to indoctrinate me for years." I shuddered just thinking about those long afternoons and evenings I spent by his side being bored into a coma.

Eventually I made it to the kitchen where I let Esme cook a huge meal for me. I could only assume Edward had a talk with her about portion size. She sat with me the entire time I ate; her eyes watched each forkful travel to my mouth. Either she was eating vicariously through me or she had poisoned me and was making sure I got my dose. She questioned me minutely about the flavors and textures, wanting to make sure everything came out just right. I would never understand what motivated vampires.

With my shoulders set and in my best beta voice I told Esme I would be cleaning the kitchen and lo and behold she allowed it, although she insisted on helping. While wiping the counter-top down I worked up the nerve to ask, "Esme, why do you take such an interest in me? Not that you aren't nice to all of us, it's just that you seem to be especially interested in me." She busily taught the boys manners from a bye gone era but she seemed to choke with pleasure anytime I allowed her to do anything for me.

Esme stopped in the middle of bagging the trash to cover my hand with hers, kinda gross but I didn't snatch my hand away. Note to self, vampires don't worry about germs. She studied our hands touching for a moment. I ignored my discomfort in the face of her obvious satisfaction. "We took everything from you dear, just by being here. All the things a girl looks forward to; getting married, having children and a home of your own to care for." She looked so serious that I dared not to giggle. Everything a girl looked forward to more than fifty years ago...or eighty rather if I had my vampire facts correct. She truly was from a different time. I looked forward to going to college to party but to be perfectly honest I hadn't mapped my life out before wolfing out. Even when Sam and I had been hot and heavy I hadn't given a lot of thought to china patterns and baby names. I wanted a kick ass wedding and that was as far as I had gotten.

"It's okay Esme, really. I'm fine. I do have Nate now and you know that changes things."

"Nahuel does change everything. Unlike your brothers you won't grow old, you will choose to keep phasing to be with him. Like us you will remain frozen in time forever. What about children, Leah? It may seem easy now but I didn't get over losing my son and Rose has never gotten over the babies she couldn't have. The price has been too high for you." Esme's amber eyes were full of self-loathing and now I felt bad for her sadness over turning me into a freak of nature. Maybe I could teach her to blame Bella too. Nah, then she would feel even worse. I chose a different tactic.

I borrowed Mom's material, the material she used to put my self-pity into perspective, "I am Quileute," I started Esme on the Leah experience, keeping my tone grave. There was no point in telling her that mostly I'm not, three quarters of me is Makah but that quarter Quileute was a real kicker. I had spent most of life tuning out when Daddy started droning on and on about our proud heritage and forcing me and Seth and even Emily to take Quileute language classes at the community center during the summers.

After an appropriately dramatic pause I continued. "My blood calls me to defend this land and these people. What is the price I paid compared to all the families that lost loved ones to the red-haired witch? You don't know how many times I asked myself '_what if I phased sooner_'. I just know I would have been fast enough to catch her." Yeah I could have caught her but I don't know what I would have done with her. I was beginning to think combat wasn't my forte. "What if we could have stopped her before the blood bath in Seattle? What is my price compared to the suffering she caused? I don't regret what I am; I only regret that it didn't happen sooner."

I laid it on thick, the same way Mom had given it to me. She made me feel petty and small about losing my hair of all things. That's what I was crying about when she came into my room while I tried to style my raggedly cut hair into something presentable. Making an enemy of Delores, Sam's mother, and the only beautician on the reservation had not been a good move. Sam didn't inherit her skill; he gave me the same cut he gave the boys but longer so the chopped with axe effect was a lot more noticeable.

Mom showed me the obituaries of the hikers and vacationers who had been lost right here in our own backyard; we didn't know the connection with Seattle at the time. She read each one aloud to me and made me see them as people whom _**I**_ could have personally saved. Mom wielded the guilt like a sword, cutting me down to size. Mom evened up my jagged edges and in a show of support, she had her hair cut severely short but perfectly styled. After all she wasn't the one who spread hateful rumors about Delores' son. That conversation changed my perspective and it seemed to work on Esme too. She looked at me with slightly less sad eyes and smiled a long suffering smile before patting my hand. She took the garbage out and I washed my hands and finished wiping down the kitchen.

Eventually the Cullens came in from scouting. They didn't find anything interesting or helpful. Carlisle assured me I wouldn't always collapse when Nahuel did. He was sure it was only because Nate was exceptionally tired and his system was dangerously close to shutting down. I was alarmed, "Shutting down as in death? You didn't mention that last night!"

"It would have hardly been the time or place," he justified. I began to think lying is a vampire reflex. "I believe at most he would have slipped into a coma which he would have recovered from in time, but the truth is Leah, I can't be certain." Like Jacob had in the morning, Carlisle charged me with monitoring Nate to make sure he got his proper rest. I couldn't imagine anything more important.

I made the journey up the stairs about a million times, talked to Emily on the phone to let her borrow a pair of my fuckawesome shoes from the Alice collection and had a quick functional chat with Mom when she called to check on Nate's condition. Of course she knew about his collapse but it wasn't the wolf network this time; Carlisle told her about it at the hospital. Even vampire men gossip.

"Leah!" the sweetest voice called out. Nessie was excited to see me when she ran into the house early in the afternoon. She hurled herself into me with not inconsiderable strength. I was winded but I didn't want to show it. A few coughs escaped before I could speak though.

"You're awfully happy to see me. Does this mean you want to play dolls?" I took her hand to lead her to the toy box. Playing dolls would be a welcome change to being worried. I was really close to seeing if I could get my hands on a baby monitor.

"I do, I do! I thought of names for my dolls!" She glanced up at me, smugness and excitement warred on her tiny face.

We settled on our knees in front of the toy box before taking out the two Barbie dolls we played with last night. "This one can be Elizabeth Bennett," she held up the brunette Barbie, and then held up the blonde one, "and this one can be Jane Bennett."

"Like Pride and Prejudice?" She nodded with enthusiasm. What the child lacked in creativity she made up for in knowledge of the classics. Playing with Ness was a wonderful distraction. With her little hand on my face, Nessie shared her imagination. It was the coolest immersion experience ever. Our dolls walked and talked and interacted in a world of Nessie's creation, it was her version of 17th century England which looked a lot like the Pacific Northwest. Being Barbie dolls they still couldn't bend their elbows but Disney had nothing on animation Nessie Cullen style. Would there be any reason to tell Jacob that Mr. Darcy, the romantic hero, was a hell of a lot taller and darker than Jane Austen ever intended? Heck, I could tell him; there was no danger of that high school dropout knowing what I meant. He might not be thinking about Ness growing up but it was already on her mind. Playtime was the perfect soothing balm until Bella took her off to try coercing food into her.

Pretty soon my pack streamed in after school to take their places around the television. Each of them asked about Nahuel as though they didn't know nothing had changed. They didn't fool me but it was nice to know they cared. I resolved to go back up stairs and climb back in bed with Nate when Sam and Emily arrived. Sam and Emily!

"I thought this was an exclusive hang out, looks like they're letting any old riff raff in." Quil greeted Sam from across the room when Carlisle opened the door.

"I'm taking Emily out tonight to Port Angeles and thought we would check on Nahuel's condition on the way. Has there been any change?" Sam spoke in his formal tones to Carlisle, ignoring Quil, pretty much like everyone else did. Nate had exceeded his maximum time of about fourteen hours and was going on sixteen; it was the elephant in the room no one had spoken of. Carlisle shook his head in answer to Sam.

I focused on Emily instead, "Looking good Ms. Young." I held her at arm's length, admiring her sweater and skirt ensemble instead flinging myself into her arms to whine like I longed to do.

She laughed, "It's the shoes." My ever modest Emily replied poking her toe out to show me my black pumps.

"No, it's not," I insisted, although they did look good on her. Shoes were the only thing we could share now. We used to be the same size but I gained three inches in height and went two sizes in muscle mass. She was slender and graceful and I was what Amazons aspired to be.

Emily arched one eyebrow at my fake ass smile, "Lee, what's wrong?"

"I'm worried about my imprint of course but he's just sleeping. There really isn't anything to stress about," I lied, vampire ways rub off after a bit. I had to downplay my concern because if I didn't, Emily would cancel her plans to hold my hand until the crisis was over. "I'm sure he'll be up before too long. Now enough about me. What's got you so happy?" For once I tried to not make things all about me.

"Sam and I set a date!" Emily couldn't suppress her excitement. "We're going out to celebrate. I won't be 'Ms. Young' much longer."

"Hey, that's fabulous! When?" Not even a twinge of pain remained to trouble me from my past. It was plainly obvious what the catalyst was for Sam and Emily to finally set a wedding date so I felt a little guilt, but no pain.

"April..."

"LEAH!" Nate's voice rent the relative peace of the house. I whipped around without apology to fly to his side.

Again my breath was knocked out of me by a half vampire as Nahuel collided into me wrapping his arms around me tightly as I barely managed to remain upright. He dropped to one knee and forced my shirt up; thank goodness it was a bra day. "You...you are unharmed." He ran his finger tips along my rib cage studying me for damage.

"Well sure," I could barely remember sustaining the injury when the vampire raked her nails down my sides. Her tiny nails on my massive wolf body did little damage especially when compressed down as I phased. The resulting injury didn't even leave a scar. I removed the bandages in the shower because I am a wuss about bandages. "The healing comes with the shapeshifting gig. See? I'm perfectly fine."

He got to his feet but didn't release his hold on my ribcage, his fingers still searching for any sign of damage. "You're fine now! Leah what were you thinking? You were in no way prepared for combat last night!"

Wasn't he stealing my line? I tried to keep a rational mind about it, which was hard because I was pretty sure I wasn't the one who fell asleep mid-fight. "What are you talking about?"

"You charged that vampire with no thought of defense! You could have been killed! I insist you give up these patrols. You are unskilled in the ways of combat."

Jacob and Sam, who were prepared to be entertained spectators, reacted. Jacob got to his feet and joined us by the door in a flash but Sam was the first to speak, "Hold on a minute there..."

Nate didn't let him finish, "Why is she not better prepared to fight?" He was incensed, his voice was louder than I had ever heard it. "Why has she not been adequately trained?"

"You _**fell asleep **_in the middle of a fight and you criticize Leah's skill?" Jacob was incredulous.

"I fell asleep but not before annihilating the threat. Leah attacked an unknown vampire in a full frontal attack leaving herself completely open. You two have much to answer for!"

"I trained Leah myself." Sam defended, his hostility growing. Emily slipped behind Sam, she never forgot herself when wolves got angry. I broke the painful grip Nate held on my ribcage before he gave me the injury to justify his over-reaction. I planted my hands fully on his chest to keep him from advancing.

"You didn't do a good job!" Nate gave no quarter, his muscles tensed beneath my hands. He was ready to spring. "Were you trying to get rid of her?" Good gracious those were fighting words.

Before Sam could react Emily grasped his ear in a death grip from behind, snatching his head back at an awkward angle.

Nate scoffed, "Even she knows to attack from the back." Sam fumed but didn't say another word. Emily had pretty much neutralized him. He vowed to never lose control around her but she wasn't taking any chances. I would have laughed but Nate's pointed look at my frontal attack stifled the urge.

"Nahuel, what's your problem dude? Why the hostility?" Jacob tried to be the voice of reason. He held his hands palms out in the universal, 'we don't want any trouble' gesture.

Nate was not appeased, "Right before my eyes Leah could have died because she obviously does not know how to fight."

"We spar all the time. Leah is just as good as anyone in the pack." Jacob insisted. We did work out a lot in anticipation of the Volturi invasion but all of us had been slacking off this week with the crisis over.

"That speaks poorly of your whole pack, and when do you spar? I have not seen this sparring except on the television screen. You do understand that will not help you in an actual fight."

"I admit we don't practice as much since the Volturi have come and gone but we do practice, mostly on the reservation though. Wouldn't want vamps, even the Cullens seeing our super secret moves." Jacob smiled a little still trying to diffuse the situation.

"You are sparring only against each other?" Nate's response was bitingly derisive. "You are not under attack from werewolves! How exactly is that supposed to help?"

"We can't practice with the Cullen's. The natural animosity would be too much even in friendly sparring. Someone could get hurt." Jacob answered rationally.

"Natural animosity? Natural animosity!" Nate's right hand swept to take in Embry, Quil, Seth and even Kara crowded on the sofas with Emmett and Jasper. "You are here more than Carlisle!" Nate jerked his thumb towards the silent Carlisle still hovering at the door wearing the observational study-mode expression. "Natural animosity. I have seen no evidence of..." And he was gone with one word echoing in the wind of his departure, "Coffee."

"What the hell just happened?" Jacob was the first to speak in the now silent room.

Emily released Sam's ear and took his hand. "Sam and I are going to go now." Emily scuttled out the door dragging Sam, who looked at me with a face full of thunder. Lord knows what he thought I had been telling Nate. Em gave me a look of sympathy and amusement.

"Please come again," Carlisle called out at Sam and Emily's retreating backs. The whole room observed a moment of silence to try and decipher what happened.

Carlisle took the first crack at it, he started off slowly, ponderously, "Huilen mentioned something about Nahuel being at his most dangerous when he first awakens but..." Carlisle fell silent when Nate strolled back into the room carrying a huge steaming white mug.

"Please forgive me. I'm not quite myself until I've had my first cup of coffee." He sipped from the mug and rejoined the fracas he started, slipping his free hand around my waist as though he hadn't just accused Sam of trying to get me killed.

"Huilen mentioned that you liked your coffee ..." Carlisle trailed off because there really are no words for a caffeine addicted vampire.

"This is true. There is nothing like the first cup of coffee to get the day started right. This is not what I usually drink, but at least it's Columbian. It will suffice." Nahuel took a gulp and inclined the cup at Edward who smiled slyly as he joined us in the room. "Thank you Edward. Your mind reading does come in handy."

Nate turned his now warm and open gaze on Jacob, "Now where was I? I forget how truly young you all are. I will be training Leah myself from now on. Last night was the most terrifying experience of my long life and I never wish to see the like again." He drained the cup. "Now come along Beautiful, I need to retrieve my belongings from Oregon, I believe it was." Nate didn't give anyone including me time to react. He whisked me out the front door and off to Oregon. Oregon?


	9. Chapter 9 Swagger Like Us

**A/N:** First, thanks for the beta work Ashtwi. Second, enjoy peeps. I know its been awhile.

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own Twilight or its characters. I think you know this by now.

**Chapter 9 Swagger Like Us**

The newer, calmer, coffee-filled Nate never backed down on calling me a piss poor fighter and began his training regimen with me when we returned from Oregon. Yup, some random forest in Oregon is where he and Huilen stashed their travel packs on the way to the big show down. Alice encouraged them to leave the few belongings they had carried on their backs in the forests of the Oregon. She had a strange inkling that they would not be subjected to Aro's touch. It was a precaution to try to maintain some of their anonymity.

On the trek there Nate talked extensively about the tiring journey on foot from Chile. He was already exhausted by the time he arrived in the clearing. I have to admit it gave me butterflies when he said, "How could I sleep after finally catching a glimpse of you? There are no dreams that can compare." Then I crashed equally hard when he added, "When I realized you were borderline suicidal I simply could not risk being incapacitated for hours on end."

When we reached his stash in the hills he asked, "Would it be possible for us to spend this evening out here, away from the constant seeking of danger?" Being so far from my pack had me reluctant to encounter the dangers this forest could hold for us. My hesitation prompted him to virtually plead, "Leah I will never allow anything to harm you again. I have recovered fully. Do you trust me to keep you safe? Will you stay with me?" He pleaded as though I would really say no, as if I didn't know how far he would go for the likes of me.

I checked in with Jacob to make sure the pack would be okay without us, but after Nate's low caffeine display I think he was more worried about me than the safety of the pack. With my responsibilities covered we hunted together for the first time. We made a good Jack Sprat and wife sort of team. We took down a buck deer; Nate drained it and I ate it. Even my wolf found it more bearable with the flesh less squishy. Still gross though, no getting around that.

We made camp around a small fire Nate built before settling me in his arms on his bed roll. We talked for hours on end, nothing life shattering, just chit chat. We let the conversation flow naturally. He voluntarily explained his coffee addiction's most mundane origin. He picked it up at working on various plantations and ranches. The work day started with a cup of the strong brew. To fit in, he drank the coffee, finding that if he took it slowly, nursing a cup or two, he could avoid conversation altogether. Repeat for decades on end and he became a classic coffee case. It was almost exactly like my mom, picking up the habit working at the hospital. It seemed bizarrely normal on him. I recounted tales of never mess with Sue Clearwater until after the second cup. He nodded in understanding saying it was a wonder he didn't kill someone considering how long he had been without his coffee. Naturally I pointed that he had actually killed three times. No wondering involved. He brewed a small pot of his favorite blend over the fire. I was convinced I wouldn't fall asleep after tasting it but eventually I drifted to sleep cuddled safely in his arms.

During that evening he asked me to give up patrolling several times at sporadic intervals woven naturally into the conversation. When he realized I'd be as stubborn about keeping my patrols as he was about staying awake all that time, he insisted we start training right away.

Training with Nate was not at all like training with the pack. It never occurred to me that maybe the guys were holding back because I'm a girl. If anything, I thought they were trying to do me in since I had insulted each and every one of them, including Seth, the former bed-wetter, in every way humanly possible. They probably weren't going easy on me on purpose; it was more than likely a subconscious or a Sam-conscious thing.

Nate had no problems of the sort. He'd spent his whole life sparring with his aunt. She was harder than rock and cold as ice but she too was female like me, although she probably didn't bruise like me, curse like a sailor, or inadvertently insult his mother. Regardless he didn't cut me any slack for any reason and I had the black and blue marks to prove it. I wanted to be his tough warrior chick, you know, take it like a man, silent and strong but the truth is that shit hurt. A lot.

I asked him, in order to stall while we took a brief water break, "Did all of your technique come from fighting Huilen?" If so, I could understand why he was not inclined to worry about her traveling alone.

"No, not all of it. I owe a great deal of my fighting knowledge to Joham."

I was surprised by his answer. "I never took Joham to be that kind of dad. Showing you how to survive and what not." I took a small sip of water, trying to make the pain-free moment last.

"Ah, you are right. Joham is not that type of father. Early on, before he had given up hope of me joining him, he did put forth the effort to teach me a little of what he knew. He wanted me alive on the possibility I would change my mind. He has since given up, but on those occasions that I do visit my sisters he does try to kill me. It has kept my skills sharp."

His delivery was so calm, making his statement seem rational. I had to play it back in my head '_does try to kill me_.' Once I was sure all the words were in the right place I exclaimed, "What?"

"He claims he is keeping my skills sharp but I know better. He would not mind if I were dead. That is simply his way." Nate took a swig of water and rested his arm across my shoulders, pulling me close to place a kiss above my ear, "I am glad you had a good father who cared for you." In his far away gaze I saw many memories I could not even wrap my head around. He stared out over the back lawn to the river rushing by, the last rays of sunlight danced on the water and enhanced the faint glimmer of his skin. His expression placed him many miles away, in another time and place. There was something poetic and timeless about the moment, something that said sit still, think deep thoughts, pose for a postcard and let the man have his moment of reflection. I wanted to respect the moment but not as much as I wanted to hear more about this Joham and why I shouldn't go kill the mutherfucker.

"Back up, how is it _his way_ to want you dead? How is it that you haven't killed him? If I ever meet him I intend to, right after 'Hello'. I don't know maybe even before 'Hello'." I needed at least some sort of an introduction just to know who he was. Then again, we were killing unknown vampires on sight so before 'Hello' was the way to go. I was resolved, kill Nate's father on sight and feel the satisfaction later when Nate identified the body.

"You would try it, wouldn't you?" Nate chuckled easily. "Then my hand would be forced and I would have to destroy him. However, as much as Huilen has watched out for me all these years, Joham has watched over my sisters. To him I am little more than a failed experiment; I will not join him and I refuse to procreate. He wishes to abort the experiment. Obviously he waited far too long."

I was trying to figure out how one hadn't killed the other. I couldn't see a friendly resolution. "That makes sense somewhat but...how do these fights end where you both come out alive?"

"Leah, did you notice how the two males that I killed remained standing?"

I could remember it now; the bodies were rooted firmly to the ground like trees. It actually hadn't seemed too odd at the time, Nate's speed had all of my attention, but now on closer examination it was off. Just the force of Nate propelling himself away should have knocked their bodies to the ground.

"My venom affects them. It appears to act on what passes as their central nervous system. Joham likes to say I am tainted as though it's an insult. As if, were I a good son, I would let him kill me. I learned this from my early encounters with trying to leave Joham alive. My venom leaves him incapacitated for a few hours. My sisters and I visit in peace while Joham fumes helplessly. I rather enjoy his impotent fury."

Daintily, I took another sip, preparing to ask him anything whatsoever that might keep him off my ass. "So...um...what do you and your sisters do on these visits?"

"No more dallying," Nate announced and sprang to his feet, "we have a few more minutes until dinner."

"Maybe we should hit the shower now." I tried to divert his attention but just like every other tactic I tried to forestall training, it didn't work. If I said I was tired he would respond, "And sometimes you will be Leah but remember, vampires do not tire, you will have to fight through it." When I complained that he came at me too hard he said, "That's how fights go, Leah, hard until someone dies. Now get up and come at me again." When the rage took over and I lashed out with everything I had in me, Nate wasted no time putting me in check, physically in check, embarrassingly in check. "Anger, rage and any other emotion," he contended, "clouds the judgment. Unwavering focus requires a coolness and calmness of mind." I longed to fight a real vampire because I was pretty sure it had to be easier than fighting this freaky fast monster, and no matter the outcome with a hostile vampire there would be no lecture at the end. When I shared this brilliant insight with Nate he objected playfully with the logic that vampires are, if nothing else, dramatic, "Beautiful, they can't help monologuing. If you lose, the lecture could go on for hours and hours."

It took some time and effort to get past my awe of him and my concern for his physical well being, but once I did I found out I was indeed physically stronger than him. On the rare occasions that I landed a solid blow on my imprint two things happened; I was hit with mental recoil of pain so severe I could barely function, and Nahuel became ecstatically happy, rejoicing with pride to anyone who would listen. I complained about the backlash of pain, but again he would say, "Leah you will have to attack through pain too. Remember it is all in your head, so hone your body to keep fighting. Always be prepared to separate mind from body. It is not an easy task but it will give you an advantage against vampires who use mental attacks. I have found they lack skill in hand to hand combat." He had an answer for everything and that answer seemed to be 'Leah, I will be whooping that ass repeatedly until you can stop me. Comprende?'

I did perchance say one day under my breath, "Shouldn't there be some sorta wax on, wax off routine first?" To my surprise he responded, "I do not have a car and your problem is considerably more dangerous than a bunch of human teens." Karate Kid, he explained, was part of his pop culture curriculum in the intense training the Cullens were providing. He tried to convince me his training was just as grueling but somehow I had trouble believing watching movies half the morning and playing video games the other half could not truly compare.

We sandwiched workouts or 'brutal beatings' as I affectionately called them, in after I got off work from my new job at the reservation school. There happened to be an opening for a teacher's aide in the pre-school class, because the previous aide did not return after winter break. Having met the kids I could see why. Although I had no credentials I got the job solely on Sam's recommendation. I never even applied or interviewed. The school secretary simply called me to come in to complete paperwork and next thing I know I'm zipping coats, wiping noses and enforcing naptime. Getting a job based on who I slept with never figured into my life's plan, but whatever, it was a job.

Our life had a semblance of routine. Work followed by practice on the Cullen's back lawn, then a huge meal with my pack around Esme's dining room table or off to the side in the private room with my imprint. If we were lucky we could catch a private moment at our tree or in the golden room. Then I would get home a.s.a.p. to get in some actual sleep before going in to battle with the three and four year olds. The routine was exhausting but there was no point in complaining. Jared, Sam, Paul, those of us out of school and holding down full time jobs, had to work some sort of private life in where it could fit. Even the pack members in school, which now included Jacob due to a conversation I had with my little buddy Nessie, had a rather tight schedule. My latest theory was 'imprinting: _because wolves don't have time to date_'. Impatiently we waited for the new wolves to mature because there was no option of reducing patrols; they had become more vital than ever.

In the two week period after Nate's collapse we had seen four more instances of vampire activity. By we, I meant Nate and me. A definite pattern had emerged; all vampires were coming straight to Nate. No matter where the new scent was picked up, it became clear that the path would deviate and come in a direct line towards us. It would seem that vamps looking for werewolf action would at least follow the wolf smell that permeated the forest. But no, our scent was abhorrent and unknown to them. Nate's smell, although unknown, was alluring and the greedy bastards fell for it every time.

Nate and I weren't so much a patrol team as we were bait, in other words we were the envy of our warrior friends. Envy. Emmett brought me a purse I left behind at Cullen Arms; I don't carry a purse and certainly not a Coach bag, it was Rose's. What the hell was I gonna do with a purse in my wolf form...at 2 a.m in the middle of the forest? Rose showed up on his heels to retrieve it dressed in black leather with her hair in a ponytail stuffed down the back of her jacket. All she needed was some hoop earrings to remove to make her intentions clear. They ran with us the rest of the night with no further word of explanation. Jasper and Edward came at least twice together to 'check on us'. Edward cleverly brought a thermos of coffee and sandwiches making his intrusion welcome. They stayed on our heels all night, I guess making sure the digestion went okay to be on the safe side.

My wolf brethren were even more transparent. Jacob said I looked tired and offered to run with Nahuel in my stead. I had to remind him that Nate didn't actually have patrol duties; they were mine. Jacob pulled rank and ran with us anyway. Seth insisted that Mom asked him to keep an eye on me and followed us an entire evening. Paul however took the cake. After a little pack meet up in the forest he tried to pass himself off as me, since we have the same wolf coloring. He took my place at Nate's side while I pulled a burr off Kara's back. Nate was not fooled but he was amused and rode Paul's back for a good hour while calling him a "Good Dog" and scratching behind his ears. I ran with Kara during Paul's shenanigan which represented real progress for Nate and I. I was out on patrol and he was not at my side or even on my back. He was gaining some confidence in my skills, not enough to let me fight, but enough to not watch me like a hawk.

_**Nate**_

I eased the door open, not wishing to startle her sleeping form on the bed. She was, as always, a vision of loveliness, my little Leah. So innocent and so delightfully unsweet. She even had a wrinkle between her eyebrows like someone had angered her in her dreams. I smiled for she was probably dreaming of me. I was ever so tempted to smooth her brow with a kiss but resisted the urge. My Leah, I had observed, was her happiest when she had a little anger about her. I should not linger.

The carpet further dampened my already silent footsteps as I crossed her room to the bed. I could hardly believe I was actually here in Leah's bedroom, her inner sanctum, one of the many places where I could not be by her side. I wondered about her entire childhood that had passed in this room, in this house, in this tiny village where she seemed to make enduring enemies. As tempting as the prospect of exploring was, it could not compete with the temptation of Leah lying there pliant in a thin pink shirt that barely reached the curve of her luscious bottom. A wisp of white cotton hid her perfection from my sight. Finally at her bedside, I hesitated on calling her name to wake her, wanting to prolong the exploration of my Leah.

The sheet lying only across her calves was offensive to me. I found every inch of her fascinating; I whipped the offending cotton away before giving in to the urge to caress. I traced a path with a single finger starting at her delicate ankle over the smooth skin of her lower leg to her firm calves. I did not rush the stolen moment as I should have, instead drawing it out. By the time I reached her upper thigh, my touch had changed from one finger gentle enough to caress a bubble to three fingers pressing in to soak up her delightful heat. Vampire women were frigid, human women were tepid like coffee cooled beyond its peak. Leah was just right, like espresso - hot and strong. My hands stretched open greedily in anticipation of gripping her ass. Soft skin, firm and rounded; I could get lost in every part of her. I chuckled quietly. Could? I was lost; drowning was a more apt description. I massaged her smooth warm skin, leaning in to kiss each crescent.

"Umm," Leah moaned and I jumped back like a thief caught red-handed. She had not awakened, slightly roused she rolled onto her back mumbling, "Nate" her name for me. I reveled in her claim of me on her lips. 'Nate' was a man, not a monster living a ghost of a life. Nate had a future with this beautiful, lush, warm woman. If I could just keep her alive for it, but even in that she was progressing. Every day it was easier for her to focus beyond all distraction and battle me fiercely. I gloried in the strength of her blows; each one was a promise of her longevity and mine too, for I doubted my ability to exist without her. NaLeah was an apt description.

My eyes drank her in. The touch of a frown was gone, a hint of a smile in its place. The thin cotton shirt was still there, stretched across taunt nipples. My mouth watered in anticipation of tasting the wonder twins as she called them. I didn't want to tell her they were not exactly twins, each had a distinct flavor and the right was at least a whole gram heavier than the left.

However not even the wonder twins could compete with the most enchanting aroma of all, the smell of Leah's arousal. Her earthy essence permeated the air with the sweetest perfume I had ever known. There was no blood that could compete with this smell. That was the trade off; Leah was mine as long as I could control myself and never indulge in human blood again. If I slipped just once I would forever be cut off from her. I breathed her in again, the trade off was a fair one. Leah wanted me; even in her sleep she wanted me, just as I am. Vampire allurements were not necessary; all she wanted was me, for no discernible reason.

How could she think she was not made for me? Leah was even infertile; therefore I would never have to see my monstrous offspring claw its way free, poisoning her blood with certain death. Leah was just right.

I leaned in closer to her core, running my nose along the thin cloth covering her sex while inhaling her deeply into my lungs and I was powerless in the grip of the call of my body to hers. My good intentions upon entering crumbled to dust. My tongue replaced my nose, wetting the cotton, knowing it would not be enough. I disrobed her quickly but stealthily for I knew her wrath would be great when she caught me here. I did not want to hasten her full anger; I needed a little more time.

Spreading her lean brown thighs, I inhaled deeply yet again before using my thumbs to grant me full access to her sex. I endeavored to do that which I had never done before. My tongue touched her velvety folds obliterating all else as her taste exploded in my mouth.


	10. Chapter 10 Rise of the Legend

A/N: Thanks as always to my beta AshTwi. Please read and enjoy.

Disclaimer: As of publication Twilight nor it characters belong to me. If that ever changes I will let you know immediately. Via press conference.

**Chapter 10 Rise of the Legend**

The dream was too too good to let go, I fought to stay with my dream Nate. My body was close to release. I so... didn't want to wake now. Try as I might, consciousness overtook me but even as I woke the edge of explosion didn't let up. All of my senses were on fire. The wave of insanity and pure pleasure crested as my eyes flew open to see Nate's dark head between my thighs. My O didn't ask any questions, she just was. Before I could gather my wits Nate swiftly moved to push inside me.

"Beautiful, Beautiful Leah." His voice was husky and thick in my ear. I wrapped my legs around his waist wondering why the walls were white and not gold. He withdrew almost entirely and my hips gyrated greedily to reclaim him. He stroked back in forcefully, claiming me. "UGH!" I opened my eyes to the ugly swirl pattern on the ceiling. "Fuck!" I exclaimed. Nate stroked harder at my unintended encouragement. I was under my Daddy's roof having sex with a vampire. Nate was on my reservation. There was going to be hell to pay.

Then and there I made a conscious decision to make the fall out worth it. I tangled my fingers into his hair; nobody had better touch a strand of it. **Nobody**.

Aggression flowed as I captured his mouth for a kiss. My tongue dueled his endlessly for dominance before I asserted my strength, flipping him onto his back. Sometimes it was incredibly good to be supernatural. We didn't miss a stroke. I rode him hard and long, reveling in my ability to please him with every moan of pleasure that passed his lips. His eyes were on me the whole time, riveted. His open adoration, an aphrodisiac in itself, pushed me over the edge again and this time I took him with me. As our heartbeat slowed its frantic pace Nate took advantage of my momentary weakness to pin me to the mattress. "Good morning, Beautiful," he whispered in my ear.

"Good morning to you too!" I laughed rolling us onto our sides for more equal footing. He had risked his life to be with me. No, there was no risk, I would fucking massacre anything that looked at him wrong. Brave words. Empty brave words. I didn't want to fight, these weren't random vamps. I had actually babysat some of the newer members of Sam's pack. Those kids were the real threat because they weren't of my pack and therefore they weren't bonded to Nate. They had never been on the evening patrols like the older members of Sam's pack to even get to know Nate. All they knew was the imprint obligation just like they knew Nate wasn't supposed to be here. It was pretty clear to me which obligation would be stronger.

It was past time to think of an exit strategy. It wouldn't be long before Nate's scent was detected and someone would show up. Maybe I should call Jacob? I could really use his support. He could gather our whole pack to get Nate out safely. My pack would no doubt back us up but still, I didn't want to cause a fight. I would have to rely on stealth. Good ole wolf stealth. Wolves are known for stealth. I think everyone in the state heard about us last year. I rolled my eyes and groaned. We were doomed.

"Come on babe, I gotta get you out of here." I said this but made no attempt to move.

"Perhaps I have caused some trouble. I am terribly sorry Beautiful, you are like a drug to me. The more I have of you the more I need." He caressed my bottom and gave it a playful slap. His length hardened and twitched against me. My juices flowed in response, and I almost said, 'Fuck it, let 'em bring it. NaLeah is nothing to mess with.'

Almost, until I heard the heavy thump of a wolf's heartbeat in my house and it wasn't Seth, I knew his rhythm. "There's someone here!" I leapt from the bed, hustling into the sweats discarded at my bedside and grabbing my t-shirt. Or rather a part of my t-shirt, it was shredded and not tiny wolf shreds either but large, horny, half-vampire shreds. I took a moment out of my panic to glare at Nate; I had told him about ripping my clothes to pieces.

"Put your clothes on and be cool. Let me handle this." I grabbed the white button down shirt, obviously Nate's, shrugging into it quickly. _Nate wore a shirt? _I could ask him about that later. My fingers flew over the buttons with force urgency.

"Leah, relax." Nate's tone was calm, like it always was unless he was coffee deprived. Funny thing is I _was_ rather relaxed. It was exceedingly hard to truly panic with the shared heartbeat. Nate was one cool dude and it made me cool too, whether or not I wanted to be, even when the situation clearly called for panic.

Nate climbed from my bed reluctantly and shrugged into his pants. Could he move any slower? He literally put his pants on one leg at the time instead of that hop thing he usually does. As soon as he was done assing around I grabbed both of his hands in mine, positioning him directly behind me as I marched from my room and down the hall. Angry glare in place, warrior chick mode switched to on, I was prepared for anything.

Sam Uley rose from my sofa.

Fuck! The situation was worse than I thought. He looked pissed and kinda flustered. "What's your problem?" He barked. His eyes darting passed me to Nate.

"Look, Sam, I can explain." I tried the cool voice first. The last thing we needed was escalation.

Sam didn't follow my cue to tone it down as he damn near yelled, "I don't need an explanation! I know how the parts work!"

"It is obvious that you do." Nate spoke at my ear, still behind me. What the hell was he talking about? I'd try to figure that out later.

Sam glared past me, obviously at Nate.

"Sam!" I tried to get his attention to give him my brilliant explanation. I hadn't made it up yet but if he would just hear me out it would dazzle him.

"You were supposed to wake her up!" Sam roared.

"She is awake. Is she not?" I could feel Nate's smirk as he pressed a kiss to the base of my neck.

"You know what I meant," Sam was angry. I was confused and more than a little aroused by the neck kiss, the boy was learning my spots and making new ones every day. And Nate was clearly amused by it all.

He stepped even closer, wrapping his arms around my waist, squeezing me tight before kissing my neck again, "She is irresistible to _me_." What the hell? Did he think Sam should find me irresistible too?

"Did you even try resisting?" Sam asked dryly, "Even a little?"

"I very nearly did, but she was half-naked and the smell of her..."

"Hush!" I snapped quickly at Nate. Understanding began to dawn on me. "What? Wait...You knew he was here?" I was playing catch up because their conversation made no sense whatsoever.

"Knew? Of course. I brought him here." Sam puffed up in the chest just the way the old Sam did when he had done something to please me and wanted me to know and gush over it with appropriate enthusiasm. "But I may never do it again. I told you the arrangement. You are my responsibility the entire time you're on my reservation. I gave my word that you would be escorted at all times."

"I was never alone..." Nate taunted Sam. "And you weren't alone for long either."

As if on cue, I heard the water come on in the bathroom.

"Sam?" I questioned.

"I called Emily over after it became apparent lover boy wasn't going to come out anytime soon." Sam admitted with a little less of the self-righteous attitude. Now the flustered part of his appearance, the sheen of sweat and the disheveled clothing made sense.

"What have you been doing on my mom's sofa?"

"Beautiful, it is not that hard to figure out." Nate playfully chided me, adding, "I would say it was very similar to what we were doing. From the sound of things they both had a very good time. Are you really angry at me Sam, or upset that you almost got caught? You were scrambling awfully hard."

Sam's face was still hard but it was impossible to take him seriously now so I didn't. "Sam, why don't you go into the bathroom and straighten yourself out? You'll feel more Alpha-like once you zip your pants and turn your shirt right side out. Okay?"

He mumbled, "Try to help some people," as he walked toward us to go down the hall.

I put my hand on Sam's arm to stop him as he passed, "Thanks Sam. I really do appreciate you bringing Nate to me. It's just a shock, you know?" It was very much like Sam to go the extra mile to help someone, even me.

With a complete lack of subtly Nate shifted me around so that my hand dropped from Sam's arm. "We both thank you for your kindness."

"Yeah, think nothing of it," Sam shrugged. "But wait right here for me okay?"

Nate nodded and Sam joined Emily in the bathroom.

"You knew they were out here the whole time, doing _it_? I didn't notice." I had not heard a thing.

"You were distracted," Nate explained smugly, "by me. You always are."

"And you weren't distracted by me?" It was a blow to think he wasn't intoxicated by my very presence.

"Do not take offense but I am a vampire; I can think of many things at once."

A random thought popped into my head, "You weren't just pissing on my leg were you?"

He exploded, "I would never!" Then, "What do you mean?" He would get used to my wolfisms in time.

"Back there in my bedroom, you didn't do that for Sam's benefit, did you?"

He looked so perplexed, head cocked to the side, hair swinging just past his shoulder. Confused looks so good on him that I forgot what the hell I was talking about and it hit me. Nate was really here. In my house. On my reservation. I threw myself at him. "I can't believe you're here! You even wore a shirt!" This was damn near as amazing.

"I can hardly believe it either. Sam showed up this morning and spoke with Carlisle extensively about my coming here without consulting me, as though I was a small child. Rosalie insisted I wear the shirt and shoes."

"Rose?" I pulled Nate into the kitchen. I was freaking starving. "I would have thought Alice would see to it?"

"No, she has given up on me." Nate hopped up on the chest freezer in the corner, a no-no in my house, but he was cute so it was okay. I made a bee-line for the fridge as he continued, "Rosalie said, _Remember to them you represent the Cullens. You will be properly attired to stand apart from the dogs_." Ah, that made sense. There would be an insult in there somewhere.

I wondered if steak and eggs would be too much for breakfast. I gazed into the fridge as though it held the secrets of the universe.

"Leah, I can fix you and Nate some breakfast while you shower and dress." Emily's kind voice floated into the room.

"It is Na-H..." My head snapped up as Nate started his Nahuel not Nate spiel. I gave him the glare. It wasn't my old angry all the time glare it was the, 'Oh no you didn't, I dare you to finish that statement, I fucking dare you!' glare. It was my first time trying it out with my imprint. Perhaps that is why he only looked at me curiously before hopping down from the freezer.

"It is Nahuel, but you may call me Nate, as you too are beautiful." That smooth talking devil strolled forward to offer Emily his hand. "You must be Leah's beloved cousin Emily."

Emily's hand flew to her face in reflex to cover her scars. "Yes, you are beautiful." Nate responded to her gesture. She had heard me say Nate's name with every other breath for the past couple of weeks. She knew he hadn't mastered polite lies, brutal honesty was his forte. She struggled visibly with the possibility she could actually still be a beauty.

"It is a pleasure to properly meet you. I wish to apologize for my behavior at our previous encounter. I do not awake in the best of moods." Nate oozed charm, giving Emily a devastating smile. I was a little irritated because he never tried to deliberately charm me; I got his wicked backhand instead which for the life of me I didn't understand unless I was gearing up to fight a vampire pimp. If he asked me to wear a mini-skirt and five inch heels I would finally have confirmation.

Emily preened and took his hand, "It is very nice to meet you properly as well, however I did bring a thermos of coffee over just in case." She winked with her bad eye, an odd sight but at least she wasn't trying to hide behind her hair.

Nate smiled approvingly, "Sam, you are far luckier than you deserve."

"Yeah, yeah I am." Sam ignored the obvious insult instead he gazed at Emily with that creepy psychotically devoted imprint look. Instead of being jealous of the heavy vamp charm he was pleased that Emily was pleased...by another man's flattery.

In a nauseating fashion, Emily ruffled, well there is no ruffling a crew cut, _disturbed_ Sam's hair and cooed, "No, I'm the lucky one." Hmm, I couldn't see me and Nate doing that. We weren't really cute. No, we were cute as all get out; I had yet to see a couple that looked as good together as we did. We just weren't cutesy.

"No, I don't think you have been lucky at all." Nate stated solemnly, "Leah is very sorry."

At Emily's look of confusion he explained by gesturing to her scars, "Leah is very sorry for the pain she caused you."

Confusion shone in Emily's eyes. The usual protocol was for people to act as though the scars didn't exist. "Oh, it wasn't Leah. Sam did it." She answered, caught off guard, stunned into bluntness, letting a verbal admission out that I don't think anyone had ever heard uttered before. Once his meaning sank in she exclaimed, "Oh my goodness, Leah you think this is your fault?" She fingered the angry welts on her face.

Emily wasn't the only one caught off guard. "I'm sorry Em, I...I should have never tried to keep you apart...I shouldn't have asked you to choose. I didn't know what I was asking." Nate ran his hand soothingly down my back while I finally looked Em in the eye and apologized for my complete and utter selfishness. I felt such relief at finally saying sorry to Emily, just acknowledging my part in her disfigurement. So many times I had come close to saying it, but I always backed away from dredging up that awful, 'always about Leah' moment.

Emily crossed the room and pulled me into her arms. "That was my decision, I should have been stronger. I should have followed my own heart. You must know I don't hold you responsible in any way." The white elephant in the room was dead, slayed by my darling, and his general lack of appropriate conversation.

"It was my fault alone." Sam rushed to assert his claim on the guilt.

"I agree," Nate quickly reassured him, "Your mate was right there. Why could you not see that? You had no business touching mine." His tone was sharp.

I couldn't help it, a nervous giggle escaped. Nate touched on my favorite Sam and Emily theory. Men are, in fact, dumb as shit. Emily had been so crazy about Sam that it rubbed off on me. He had to know it was both of us calling his house and hanging up, following him to the community center, the beach, the store, the school playground where the kids hang out. We didn't follow closely but where he went so did we. It was always me and Em in his face when his girlfriend Rebecca wasn't around, but Emily was the one who was actually interested in the Quileute language and culture like he was. They were the only two paying attention in the summer classes. She was the one who liked the music he liked...hell she even liked the History Channel. What if, instead of asking me out, he waited a week for the 'other Clearwater girl' to arrive for the weekend? What if he had been slightly patient? What if during all the time we dated he noticed that when Emily was around they talked constantly. My pride and my vanity would have been hurt if he had thrown me over for her and I would have pitched a massive fit, but back then it wouldn't have touched my heart. It wouldn't have broken me. To be fair, I didn't notice how right they would have been together any more than Sam. What if I said 'no' and considered Emily's feelings instead of thinking that she would be happy that 'we' had finally gotten him. But I had been in his head so I knew he was dumbstruck by the imprint much like Jared was with Kim. Suddenly they saw what was there all along.

"I am a part of Leah's past." Sam boasted his equivalent of 'I hit that first,' his smug tone made his meaning clear. "Deal with it."

An evil grin played across my face as I loftily stated, "I will never have to deal with exes, Nate took care of that."

"Yes, Beautiful, I did. If only you had done the same." We laughed at our own downright scary joke.

"So as I was saying," Emily steered the conversation away from Sam's demise, "Why don't you two get showered and dressed while I fix some breakfast."

"Nah, that's okay. We're good. I'm looking forward to chilling out for a bit." I wrapped my arm around Nate. I was looking forward to having him to myself. "We might drop by later when I take him on the tour of La Push, all 15 minutes of it." I grinned but Em didn't return my smile, in fact she and Sam both wore sour faces. "Okay, what gives?"

Sam cleared his throat, "The deal is Leah, Nahuel has to be escorted the entire time he's here."

"Big whoop, I won't leave his side."

"It's not that simple. In order to get past the council's protest and the Cullen's concerns I gave my word to guarantee the safety of our people and the safety of Nahuel the entire time he's on the reservation. My word, that _**I **_would remain with him at all times."

"As I told you Beautiful, like a small child, Sam is my sitter today." I was crestfallen but Nate seemed to be in a good humor about it. Of course, Nate seemed to be in good humor all the time lately.

I knew it was too good to be true. "Em, if you really don't mind cooking, anything will be fine and be sure to fix enough for you and Sam too. I'll try to be quick."

Sam seated himself at my kitchen table with the ease of long familiarity while Emily's frenetic homemaker energy took over as she started grabbing stuff from the fridge. I could hear the gentle patter of their conversation as I retreated to my room, pulling Nate in my wake.

We behaved well, getting showered and dressed with unnatural speed. It was the only way to prevent spontaneous sexing. It's hard to touch what you can barely see. Okay, so maybe there were a few kisses here and there and right there too, but we kept it reigned in. After all, if we didn't set a good example Sam and Em might follow suit and do the nasty on my kitchen table.

When we returned to the kitchen Sam and Emily were still chatting. Emily was busy at the stove while Sam relaxed. I set about getting the lay of the land, seeing what still needed to be done, while Nate settled at the table with Sam.

"Em, do you want me to scramble the eggs?" I asked tentatively. Emily was as sweet as apple pie, but she was a tyrant in the kitchen.

"Sure, thanks." She was working on pancakes at the griddle and the bacon was broiling in the oven. "Keep an eye on the bacon for me, will you?"

"Of course." I started cracking the eggs.

Sam's bass interrupted the melody of our work. "Em, will you get me a drink please?"

I had no idea Sam was crippled and couldn't get off his ass and get his own drink since Emily was clearly busy. It's not like he didn't know his way around my entire house. Anyway we would be eating in five minutes tops, he couldn't wait? My eyes rolled to the ceiling before I clarified the situation for him when Emily whipped into the refrigerator asking, "Do you want juice, milk or soda?"

Milk, please." Em took the milk out, flipped the pancakes and served Sam his drink all with a smile. It was times like these when the message, 'Sam and Leah were never meant to be' was flashing in blinkie lights in the night sky. I would have never stopped what I was doing to serve he who was doing absolutely nothing. I never ever did and I never would have. I suppressed the urge to dress Sam down like I used to back in the day. I shrugged and got on with taking the bacon out of the oven. Nate had better not be taking notes, of course if he was he was, I would disabuse him of the notion, quick, fast and in a hurry.

We settled down to breakfast chit chatting about bridesmaids dresses, vampires we killed, vampires we liked, my training progress and wolf stuff until I was done scarfing my food and Nate's too - except for his bacon, evidently a love of bacon is a universal male trait. Finally, I was ready to talk about Sam's babysitting plans for the day. "Do you have anything planned for my play date? The playground, perhaps? We need to get going before the swings are full."

"Ha, Ha. Very funny Leah. You want to show him around and I have a few people to see, we can do both." Sam didn't hesitate in making decisions for a group.

"Fun." I was nervous about Nate's public debut being in the forbidden territory of my reservation. He wasn't likely to get points for simply not killing people here. Of course with the packs running around half-naked, irrationally angry, and jumping from cliffs, the bar for weird had been set pretty high. It had only gotten higher as non-pack boys tried to emulate the pack by going shirtless in the Pacific Northwest winter. My boo had a shirt and shoes. He might just fit in with room to spare.

Our chaperoned date was not as bad as I expected. I would give Sam an 'A' for not letting his charge get out of arms reach, ever. Initially I gave him a 'B' for introducing Nate to as many Quileutes as possible. Only a 'B' because some people of La Push weren't on the reservation that fine Saturday morning. After realizing Nate met a few Quileutes at the diner in Forks where Sam stopped to get him all coffeed up and admittedly to give Nate's ability to not kill people a test run on the unsuspecting townspeople I had to bump his grade up to an 'A+'. For those lame ass excuses he used to take us all over the place, basically pimping us, I had to give him an 'F' circled in red. Sam's few people meant every available man, woman and child on the reservation. Sam and Emily too, she had to be in on it, showed us off shamelessly.

We were being pimped here and there and everywhere. Sam had to visit the council office. Plausible. We stopped briefly at the Coast Guard station where Daddy used to work. Odd but okay. We went to the store where Embry's mom worked to get eggs, but after they introduced us to every single person shopping Emily didn't buy a damn thing. Before the morning was over they stopped trying to justify it, Sam simply led the way to the resort, the marina, and the clinic. Seriously the one place there was good chance of encountering blood and we went there too.

Walking along holding Nate's hand and simply pointing about people and places was nice and felt almost too normal for us. Not a single solitary attempt was made on our lives. To spice it up I started a running commentary too low for normal ears, giving Nate all the dirt. I wasn't being bitchy, it was just preemptive retaliation. I had put a lot of time and trouble into offending the good people of La Push and they had remained offended. The things people said about me as I approached had ceased to bother me but I didn't necessarily want Nate to hear it.

Sam's mother was probably one of the worst. Her commentary was a litany of spite as she watched our approach through the plate glass window of her shop. "Sam's got that girl with him. I don't see how he can stand to be around _her." _She spit _her_ like an epithet. "She said such terrible things about him and his friends too. Said him and Paul and Jared where into some kinky ménage-a-something or another on account they spent so much time together. I can't stand the sight of her." That was one of my better rumors. They were open for it, half naked all the time and Sam had to physically restrain Paul a lot in the early days. Half naked and always touching...it was the perfect set up. Nate chuckled at my side.

"Your son is such a nice young man." I couldn't place the voice of the ass kisser, but there was always one.

"Well you know what they say, 'Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned'." I recognized the voice of Jared's mother. She stopped there with her pointed reminder that Sam started it. Jared's mother knew the wolf secret because she and her husband were both descended from the pack preceding Ephraim Black's. Old family stories had been passed down. Like rational adults they didn't believe it all but when you have two teen wolves in the house you tend to change your mind about what's just old superstition. Teresa, however, didn't get involved with the pack life in any way, which truth be told was better for the secrecy angle, the fewer players the better.

Delores ignored her, "My Sam is a good boy and you know that Emily is so much better for him. Doesn't have my son jumping through hoops trying to please her highness." She sucked her teeth with distaste.

"Hey Mom." Sam walked in straight past his mother to get the broom from the corner. He started sweeping the hair on the floor just as he had always done since Delores opened the shop when he was eight. He did it automatically and with affection. It was like an absent-minded hug. "How's it going this morning?"

"Everything is good. Emily, it's _always_ good to see you. She smiled at Emily and put on a poker face to nod at me, "Leah. Who is this fella here?" She inclined her head at Nate. Delores cut straight to the chase. She knew exactly who and what she was looking at. A strategic public conversation was about to ensue. Delores' shop on a Saturday was the news desk of the reservation. There were already four women there settling in for the gossip as they waited their turn in her chair. I squared my shoulders; I could do this.

"This is Na..."

"Nahuel," Sam cut me off and added, "This is Leah's friend." He stopped sweeping to walk over and clap Nate on the back. "Remember I was telling you about him? Leah met him a few weeks back, he's the guest of Dr. Cullen."

"Nahuel," I stated firmly resuming control over the introduction, "this is Sam's mother Delores Uley, she owns this," I cast my eye disparagingly around the room, "hair salon."

"Teresa, give a minute. Will ya?" Not waiting for an answer, Delores abandoned her client and whipped off her gloves, tossing the gauntlets, I mean gloves in the trash. She took Nate's hand. "It's very nice to meet you. Glad to have you here." She cut her eyes at me. "I hope you're nicer to him than you were to my Sam." Her eyes cut back to Nate, "You know she used to break up with him every week?"

"Now, Mom, don't scare him off." Sam laughed the uneasy laugh of all children who really want to say, 'shut up, you're embarrassing me, you out of touch old biddy.'

She didn't like me; I get that, but in front on my imprint? I was ready to tell her about it but instead I blew it off, "Now, you know it was only every other week." Which was a lot closer to the truth, I never broke up him more than twice in the same month, sometimes in consecutive weeks but usually not. I was in awe of Sam initially but that wore off when I realized Sam, following the anti-Josh Uley philosophy would do anything to keep a woman happy. Anything. I straight took advantage of that, all day every day.

Delores got Nate's devastating smile too before he said, "Leah has been nothing but kind to me. Perhaps Sam did not know how to handle her." He defended me, in a backhanded way, but whatever, he spoke up for me.

"Well keep doing whatever it is you're doing. I've heard some good things about you, Ms. Clearwater, over at the school." Delores grudgingly admitted to me.

Pleasantries out of the way, she decided to get up close and personal, sticking her pudgy fingers in Nahuel's hair. "You have such nice thick hair. Reminds me of my ex-husband's the way it waves. Is it curly when it's short? I bet it is. My husband's hair curled up easy like." She fingered his thick black locks, which irritated me to the umpteenth degree. I bet she was doing it just to piss me off. Of course he did have really nice hair and considering hair was her line of work, could she really resist touching vampire hybrid hair? "Anytime you like I can cut it for you." She offered eagerly.

Nate eyes unmistakably flashed to my self-styled hair before saying, "No thanks." I wasn't too insulted by his candor. He had told me as much when he asked why I wore it so short. I explained about the burrs and impossible matting becoming worse the longer the hair because it translated into longer fur. He considered this and began brushing my coat at the end of each patrol. I was letting my hair grow out but that tended to emphasize the utter lack of style.

Delores followed the path of his eyes and sneered, "Oh no, I don't do her hair."

"But yours is the only establishment that offers such services around here?" Nate spoke as though baffled by the situation. Which he couldn't be, he knew the score. His tone was light, still gentle, actually it was rather sexy. His whole demeanor was sexy. What the hell had the Cullens been teaching him about interacting with people?

"Well yes, it's just that...Ms. Clearwater and I don't see eye to eye." Delores was flustered trying to explain under Nate's disconcertingly sexy gaze.

"Leah was a mere child..." I could feel Nate bristle beside me. I cleared my throat; it was the cue that meant 'shut the fuck up'. I had him trained pretty damn good, if I do say so myself. The 'mere child' was a slip, after all he and I were the 'same' age. I gave Delores the arched eyebrow of 'Ah ha' or 'Na-na-na boo-boo' if you will, before I hustled him out. We might not have cute but we had fierce down pact.

Sam hissed, "Mom, I asked you to be nice. He's crazy..." he let that hang looking around at his audience before adding, "about her." Delores apologized to Sam before he followed us out of the shop.

I realized I had to tone down my 'tude; I had to set a good example for Nate because it was obvious he would come out shooting. Not everyone was rude though and it turned out to be a very productive day. We met Paul's father, one of the nicest men ever, who was never offended by my bitchy stage because compared to his wife I don't think my attitude even registered. He offered Nate a job on the spot. Anthony Rivers was a general contractor who mostly stuck to painting but with Paul to assist him he was able to take on larger projects. It was nice of him to offer Nate a job but it was predatory too. Nate's job interview consisted of three questions.

"Have you ever done any construction or home improvement type work?"

Nate answered, "No."

"Are you unnaturally fast and strong with an inability to forget anything?" Anthony asked casually.

"Yes, that sounds right." Nate added with mock thoughtfulness.

"Can you stand to be around my son for hours on end and perhaps not kill my customers...unless I ask you to of course? Can't let people get away with paying slow."

"I will not kill your customers but your son, I cannot make any promises." Nate grinned at Paul. I wasn't worried about them getting along. Thanks to Paul's little 'I wanna be like Leah' trick he had actually seen some vamp action. Nothing seems to bond men like killing something together.

"Sounds fair enough." Anthony shook Nahuel's hand. "Paul and I will swing by to get you Monday morning, 7a.m sharp." Just like that Nate had a job and we were one step closer to starting our life in our own place. Sure it was one more thing for me to worry about but it wasn't by far Nate's first job. As he told me, "Good leather pants and good coffee cost." Huilen had raised him with an aversion to theft. Odd right?

That wasn't the only good thing to come of our day. At the community center, a requisite stop on the 'ding dong the witch is dead, or at least getting some tour' we stopped at every class and the gymnasium. I may have hated going to the language classes there but I loved dance. Once I was old enough I helped out with instruction and participated in the summer shows put on at the resort for the tourists. It was a nice way to make money doing something I would have done for free. About a month before I phased I lost my ability to coordinate my steps due to the unnatural growth spurt. I didn't know what was going on and lashed out unfairly at everyone. Finally Kandi, the instructor, had to ask me to quit coming. Crushing though it was, I had Sam and Emily to blame it on; convenient scapegoats good for all occasions.

When we made our tour stop Kandi was trying to coerce the girls into a leaping move she could no longer master. That used to be my job; Kandi brought the know-how I brought ability and the cool factor. She asked Emily if she would be so kind as to show the pre-teens in the room what she was talking about. Emily knew what to do because like everything else, we had done dance classes together. However, asking her to dance alone in front of a room of people was the equivalent of asking her drink a cup of battery acid. Emily, for one would have preferred the acid. She was politely trying to get out of it, taking a slight step back in an attempt to disappear behind Sam.

She asked Emily again, "Surely you remember the steps? These old brittle bones won't allow me to show these girls such valuable parts of their heritage." She worked the sympathy/heritage angle to attack both Sam and Emily. Shrewd and pushy, Kandi's approach may have worked but Emily's discomfort was pissing Sam off. I could see the tick in his jaw. He was about to lose his cool so I peacefully interceded.

"Kandi, you never know when to stop. Emily said, 'No.' I'm sure you heard her. Now leave her alone. You know you wanted to ask me anyway. I was always your star pupil." I gave her an impish grin before taking my place at the front of the room to show the kids how it was done.

It had been almost a year since I danced the traditional dances but I felt invincible in this body. My confidence was not misplaced, everything I spent years learning flowed naturally. After five demonstrations or so the girls understood what had to be done. Another five and Sam had to remind me we had other places to go, you know, other places for him to act like he personally conjured Nahuel out of thin air just for me.

I ignored him easily, dancing through the routine twice more. It felt too good to dance, to let my body enjoy the movement, stronger, more powerful more graceful than ever. Not gonna lie, I rather enjoyed being the center of attention in a positive non-freak show type of way. I caught Nate's eye a few times as he watched me strut my stuff. Okay, I was showing off for my imprint too.

Kandi imperiously re-instated me in my former position as assistant for the three Saturday classes. I had no trouble refusing with equal regal attitude. She dropped the assumptive approach and offered the position with pay, pending the council's approval. She looked meaningfully at Sam. A person would have to be deaf, dumb, and blind to not notice the power Sam wielded on the reservation. He nodded his approval. As we left Nate quietly asked for a private show later.

Sam took the time to introduce Nate to his younger pack members too. I didn't think it was a good idea, but to my surprise they could hardly wait to meet him. There was no animosity, just unbridled enthusiasm and awe. To them he was like a rock star, a vampire slaying rock star. The boys not bouncing around him were too nervous to speak and then there was Mitchell.

Mitchell somehow didn't believe the hype; evidently he doubted what his pack elders remembered. Like with ass kissers there is always at least one skeptic, who thinks everybody else is an idiot and they alone know the truth. Naturally he tried a sneak attack. I mean really, a sneak attack, did the child believe nothing? It was like he was moving in slow motion in my peripheral vision. He got my wicked backhand ala Nate. Sure, I could have let Nate handle Mitchell but the way I saw it he was disrespecting _**me**_ on my own turf. I bet he wouldn't try that shit again. A bruised teen ego was the only damage for a whole day.

When we finally got to Billy Black's place and Nate greeted him in flawless Quileute, a spontaneous get-together ensued. Billy's hesitant scowl turned into a, "Hey Paul grab some steaks out of the freezer! Rachel! Do you mind if I have a few people over? Could you cook?" Then last but not least, "Hey, why don't you all stay for awhile and have a meal with me? Rachel hardly gets to see you anymore Leah." He claimed us before we made it on the porch.

As the day faded I relaxed in the Black kitchen with Mom and the Wolfchicks. Nate was outside with the guys where they were smacking each other around for fun. Both packs were out there enjoying the last of the stingy sunshine before we relieved Alice of duty. With my entire pack present I felt Nahuel was reasonably safe, but I had been keeping watch over him from the window.

"Thanks Mom." I took her a cup of coffee and settled next to her at the table finally giving up my vigil at the window. "This has been the best day ever. Having Nate here has been awesome, just incredible. How did you convince the council?"

She shrugged, "I didn't. I spoke my piece. Nate has never appeared to be a threat to me or Charlie. Billy was not at all at ease with it, but Old Quil was outraged. He wanted to know what we were patrolling for if we were going to open the doors and let vampires walk around on the lands of our ancestors. Sam contended you were our people and by virtue of the imprint Nate is too. Don't take offense, Old Quil called you an aberration of nature that should not have been. He said your imprinting on Nahuel was proof. "

I rolled my eyes as I had an epiphany; there indeed was a reason to kick an old man down a flight of stairs. He dared to say that to my mother's face. I wasn't her favorite, neither was Seth, it was Emily. Seth and I were cool with that. We had no intention of being that good, ever. Where was the fun in that? Nevertheless, I was still my mother's child.

Mom took in my expression, "Oh yes, he actually said that, losing some of Billy's support immediately. I told him he was a withered husk of a man, jealous because the ancestors favored you with the blessings he coveted." Old Quil was always downright hostile towards me since I phased. Mom had asked me to ignore it. She said Old Quil had waited to start his life, waiting to become a wolf. He delayed getting married in hopes of imprinting when his time came. He thought if he remained a free agent eventually the 'blessing' would happen for him. He was over forty before he finally quit whoring around and settled down.

"He went on and on with some tentative support from Billy, who simply thought it was too soon to have Nahuel over. Old Quil said it would happen over his dead body. Finally Sam stood and said the tribe had but one chief. One! And it is not you Elder Ateara!"

"WOW! For real Mom?" Sam was our unofficial chief but he didn't flaunt it.

"By the way where was Jake in all this?" Rachel asked with vague curiosity. She was too tired from being hostess to a wolfpack party for anything other than vague interest. Billy was making Jake attend council meetings these days. I thought he would have weighed in for me.

"In the corner asleep. Raised voices and the boy didn't stir once." Mom stated with the envious admiration of a light sleeper.

"Figures." Rachel sipped her coffee. Jacob might be an alpha but he had no intention of being chief no matter what Billy wanted. I think Rachel would have loved to be in Jacob's position.

Mom resumed her tale, "Old Quil wasn't speechless long. He reminded Sam of the one time he had ignored the advice of the council. His sneaking over to Makah to see Emily didn't turn out so well."

"Sam didn't back down or defer to Old Quil like he used to. He said he was a younger inexperienced man then and he should have listened to wisdom but he knew Nahuel and trusted his own judgment, that he was doing the right thing. Nahuel WOULD be coming to the reservation as his guest. Sam personally guaranteed the safety of the Quileutes then told Old Quil if the affront caused his death he would make sure he was buried in the traditional manner with great honor."

"I was rather proud to call him Chief Uley. Which I did to rub it in. Old Quil left in a huff after that." Mom finished her tale with a satisfied smile, she never like him overmuch; at least I assumed calling him a lecherous old dog meant he wasn't high on her list.

"Huh. Wow, that's something else." Sam had gone alpha male on the entire council for no other reason than to bring Nate to the reservation. I was in awe. That had to be the dumbest, sweetest thing he had ever done for me. Sam couldn't stop Nate, I knew this. I knew this in my bones; I knew it in every fiber of my being because most of them still hurt from yesterday's workout with my Nate. Sam didn't have an answer to him. If Nate had gone after a tasty little Quileute there would one less in the tribe come Sunday.

"Excuse me." I jumped to my feet rushing out the backdoor and into the testosterone territory of the back yard. I had to thank Sam properly for what he had done for me.

"Sam, can I have a word please?" Sam's head snapped up, big horsey grin in place, his face was open, his eyes bright with joy. His look was totally devoid of the pity and concern that had become omnipresent between us. I had an epiphany. Sam Uley loved me. Not that painful reluctant, 'Oh God, why is this happening to me' love, it had become 'hey, that's my girl Leah, she's cool, I'd do anything for her' love. It was normal everyday pack love. Of course he had still done something risky to make me happy which I chalked up to my excellent man training skills.

Sam gestured to Nate to follow him over to me. Nate narrowed his eyes glancing from me to Sam and I had my third epiphany, Nate indeed was going to piss on my leg, and real soon. But you know what? I was okay with that, I like a little jealousy in a man.

I was on my own turf with my imprint and surrounded by my friends and family. Could life get more perfect?


	11. Chapter 11 Perfection

A/N: Many thanks to my beta Ash. Also many thanks to Serina for asking for an update.

Disclaimer: Twilight still doesn't belong to me; I belong to it.

**Chapter 11 Perfection**

_Nope. Nothing goes beyond perfect. Do you know what happens when everything reaches peak delight and the world is awash with giggly rainbow goo? The planets align to put me back in my place._

"Yeah, what's up Leah? What'd you want?" Arms crossed confidently, Sam waited for his accolades on being the best ex-boyfriend ever. I had no objection to giving him his props, he fully deserved them.

Nate neatly slid an arm around my shoulders, speaking before I could word my thoughts for maximum impact, "Thank you very much for bringing me here and introducing me to _all_ of your people. Hopefully you have absolved yourself of your perceived mistreatment of _my _Leah. Can you now escort us off your lands? I wish to have time alone with _my_ mate." His voice was smooth, pleasantly woven with ringing tones of 'fuck you.'

Sam bristled at Nate's rudeness, "Escort you off my lands? Ha! Thanks for coming to_ my lands _today and not trying to kill anybody. I would have hated to hurt you." He finished with an obvious lie.

More drama. Hadn't my life reached its quota? Maybe I shouldn't expect my ex and my current, well, rest of my life mate to get along but sheesh, Sam clearly didn't want me and Nate knew about the imprint. He knew he was my one and only. What was the issue here? Was it the sex thing? I knew Nate had been with many many women before me. Naturally they were all dead; intercourse had been secondary to nourishment. It was hard for me to be jealous of the vamp equivalent of a Big Mac.

"We should be going anyway." I chose to diffuse the situation instead of waxing poetic about Sam's good deeds. "It's time to relieve Alice. Sam, you'll go with us to the border?"

"Nah, I'll run you over in my truck. Carlisle has something to discuss with me." Sam shrugged.

After saying our goodbyes we squeezed into the cab of Sam's pickup truck, Sam behind the wheel, Emily next to him, Nate beside her and me in Nate's lap. I'm a big girl so it was awkward, much like the atmosphere in the cab.

I cleared my throat. "Em, I see you brought your wedding planning binders. Are you going to show them to Alice?" Not an exciting conversational gambit but it was better than the hostile silence and much safer than the other exchanges that had passed in the truck between Sam and Nate.

"Yes," Emily answered with unnecessary vigor, she too wanted to ignore the animosity between our guys. "When you stepped outside earlier, she called and asked me to bring them. Evidently, I have been waffling back and forth over consulting with her about my wedding. She is tired of waiting for me to make up my mind one way or the other so she asked me to bring them. Lee...How do you get used to something like that?"

I shrugged, "She can't see me. That makes it easier."

"You have a point." Emily was getting to the end of our 'pass the time chit chat to ignore the sullen silence' radiating from beneath me and beside her. I was desperate to keep the chatter on topics men avoid like the plague. "April will be ..."

"There would be no harm in asking him." Damn, too late. Nate was back at it.

"I am not letting a vampire operate on Emily, nor am I going to ask his advice. Let it go!" Sam let an alpha treble seep out as if that would work. In this one instance I kinda wished it would.

"You are a fool." Nate pronounced with finality- No wait there was more. "You let your pride stand in the way of repairing the harm you have done to Emily."

"He's a vampire. I can't let him operate on Emily. It's a risk I can't afford."

"I too am a vampire and sitting next to her. I have been near enough to kill her all day but your pride had a different purpose today."

Emily's eyes widened with alarm. I put a comforting hand on her arm and shook my head, "He would never."

Nate reacted, "I would never do anything to harm you. Leah loves you and -" perhaps more convincing he added, "You smell like a wolf, -inedible."

Emily flinched, "Thanks, I think." She met my eye but I didn't have anything else to say. I didn't try to quiet Nate down either. Often I wondered if there was something Carlisle could do to help Emily. The damage wasn't all cosmetic there was nerve damage affecting her ability to blink, she used eye-drops but was still susceptible to eye infections and she didn't have full strength in her arm. I never asked Carlisle about it knowing the natural enmity would be an issue.

"See, there you go!" Sam hit the steering wheel. "You're not a real vampire so it's different." I didn't follow his argument but I would let my other half sort it out.

"I have venom, I don't age and I have for the majority of my life fed on the blood of people. What more do you require in a vampire?"

"You're an imprint and a hybrid. Your reactions are bound to be different. Carlisle is a full vampire and this is Emily's actual blood not just the scent on her skin," Sam argued his point with finality once again. Poor Sam, he thought because he wanted the conversation to be over Nate would give up.

"Ridiculous." Nate scoffed dismissively, "Carlisle has never feed on a single human and he's been a doctor much longer than you have been alive, possibly longer than I have been alive. Obviously being around blood is not an issue for him."

"Blood is the one thing their kind craves above all else," Sam stated with certainty.

"What do you know of this?" Nate questioned.

"What do you mean? What else is there to know about vampires? They are driven by their blood lust!"

"Vampires do not crave blood above all else. For one they enjoy sex much more than blood." Nate's tone was changing, the anger was lessening.

"Sex," Sam repeated in disgusted disbelief.

"Naturally. The Cullens take blood perhaps every two weeks, yet they engage in sex several hours every night. I would say sex is far more important to them than blood."

Having spent more than a few nights in the house I considered Nate's unique point. They never posed a threat to Mom or Charlie but they made the bedsprings sing songs of mercy for hours on end.

"That doesn't count, they're Cullens. They're different anyway," Sam rejoined.

"Yes, we were referring to the possibility of Carlisle _**Cullen**_ performing the surgery not offering the next random vampire we meet in the woods a scalpel and directions to your house."

I giggled silently at Nate's comment. It was so familiar, it was so me. I gave him a quick one armed hug with my left arm. He answered by stroking my back and letting his hand linger on my bottom.

Sam neatly skirted the issue, "You said vampires, not specifically the Cullens. Other vampires I am sure don't regard sex so highly."

"Yes they do, after all it is why my aunt left, but suit yourself. You know very well Carlisle would never harm Emily. Are you afraid that without the scars she would leave you behind? Perhaps find someone more attractive?" Nate needled Sam while idly slipping his hand under the back of my shirt, tracing the line of my spine.

"I would never leave Sam!" Emily spoke up in defense of her commitment to Sam, highlighting her earlier silence. Emily wanted to know if Carlisle could help. Had she spoken up sooner Nate would have let it go but like she me sat in silence to see how their argument would play out.

I think, really and truly believed, that Esme and Carlisle looked forward to Sam and Emily's visit all day. It was something about the way they stood together a few paces from the door after Edward opened it that gave away their sheer delight at having new guests.

"Sam, Emily what a pleasure to have you here. I trust everything went well today?" Carlisle nodded in answer to his own question.

"No one was harmed. Rather, I didn't harm anyone. Leah and Kara were not as well behaved." Nate answered cryptically.

Carlisle asked with some alarm, "Leah?"

"It was nothing. One of Sam's pups had to be put in his place. He tried a sneak attack on Nate, just to see if what he heard was true. To prevent a serious conflict I dealt with him directly." Didn't that sound so much more responsible than the unvarnished truth which was some punk tried to disrespect me on my turf and I was like 'Oh no he didn't!' That's how it happened in my head but Carlisle would need a translator. Edward didn't, he laughed out loud.

"Kara was good too. We were doing a bit of sparring and she took her brother Jared down." I stopped before the ugly details. Kara took him down three out of three times. Each time had been quick and effortless on her part. Jared had been humiliated. He was Sam's Beta and the second oldest phaser losing to his kid sister.

That had been the beginning of the hostilities and awkwardness in the truck. Nate had been questioning Sam minutely about the poor fighting skills of his pack. My entire pack was reaping the benefits of my daily training with Nate. It was unfair to me in every shape fashion and form but I felt cocky about Kara's victory because in a way it was mine, well in all the ways that counted.

"Everyone is fine now?" Carlisle questioned, hoping for an affirmative answer.

"Ego damage only," I assured them.

"Good, that is settled. Leah and Emily please join the other ladies and me in the media room." Esme gestured to the smaller room off the great room that housed the uber advanced computer equipment.

"Sam, you and Nahuel please join me here, we have business to discuss. Sam and Nate followed Carlisle to the white sofas already occupied by Jacob, Edward, Emmett and Jasper.

I looked from one room to the other, "The men are going to discuss business and the ladies are going to look at dresses?" Could no one else see how strange vampire chauvinism was? Apparently not.

Emily found in Alice someone equally enraptured by every detail of her impending nuptials. Being reared by Aunt Debra, a professional dressmaker, Emily could speak cut, drape and style with the best of them and Alice Cullen qualified as one the best.

Now, I like dressing cute as much as the next chick but after discussing every stitch of the wedding dress and Emily's resolve to dress her bridesmaids in pale yellow, my worst color, I sorta loss interest. I didn't feel disloyal to Em. She had Alice and Esme to gush anew over color coordinated cummerbunds.

I let my mind wander to the living room where the Cullen guilt exploded into a fund to provide full scholarships plus graduate school for all furry Quileutes when they were ready to resume such pursuits. Carlisle speaking on behalf of the clan felt it was the least that could be done since their vampire presence derailed our plans for a normal life. Seventeen full scholarships, including graduate school was a huge gesture. They even allowed a stipend for off campus housing expenses since it was hard to pretend normal in close proximity. Carlisle also offered all the necessary fake medical and immunization records that might be required.

Jacob, for once thinking about the tribe pointed out that if the trend was noticed any kid would think the key to a college education was missing a lot of school, winding up with in-school suspension and not wearing a shirt while looking good.

Edward acknowledged the validity of Jake's point and they were off on another round of blah, blah, blah, blah. I didn't hear Nate's voice once. He must be just as bored as me. I fantasized about what he might have in store for me after the private dance he requested. Maybe a repeat of this morning? It would be nice to catch that while I was awake to truly appreciate it. Foreplay admittedly was not Nate's forte. I suppose Huilen had discouraged him from playing with his food.

"Why ever would you wait so long? April is months off." Alice chirped in her high pitched voice. It no longer got on my nerves. I hardly ever saw her these days since we worked opposite shifts. I think I was beginning to miss her. _Well damn, I didn't see that coming. _

"April will be warm enough if we want to be outside and it gives me enough planning time," Emily defended her choice.

"Planning an outdoor wedding in this climate is sheer folly." Was Alice kidding? If anyone on the planet could assure the success of an outdoor wedding wouldn't it be Alice? Did she not throw Bella an outdoor reception? "Besides all of your plans are already here," Alice thumped the book. "You shouldn't put your happiness off a moment longer."

Emily looked uncertain under the strain of this bulldozer approach to changing her wedding plans. The girl wouldn't say shit if she had a mouth full. "Alice," I admonished, "Back off and help Emily choose shoes for the bridal party." This I could get into.

We talked shoes up and down and round and round with every woman vehemently representing her point. Even Bella chimed in a time or two to champion comfort over style but mostly she stayed silent but when she betrayed rapt attention to the conversation in the other room I shut right up to see what was going on.

Carlisle's melodic voice caught my attention first, "I am very familiar with her medical history." I heard the ruffling of papers.

"Are those her actual ...medical records?" Sam asked with bewilderment.

"No, of course not. This is a copy, see no x-rays." Carlisle had no clue HIPPA existed either that or he thought vampires were above the law. I guess vampires that don't kill people should be given a pass on patient privacy laws. "I made it months ago in hopes I might have this opportunity."

"Can you do anything? Or tell me what can be done?"

"There is much I can do to repair the cosmetic damage and a good deal of the nerve damage can be reversed. I would perform the surgery personally." I assume some reluctance must have shown on Sam's face. "No one else could achieve the same results. I would not have to down play my abilities, you understand. The recovery time would be shorter as well." There was no small amount of smugness in Carlisle voice.

This was awesome; it would be like erasing the worst parts of my existence. My man rocked, slaying all my demons at once. I had no doubt his words spurred Sam into asking. When I saw Emily's face restored I knew the awful 'always about Leah' nightmares would be gone for good. If only Emily could hear it too, she would be over the moon. Poor thing only had human hearing. She was missing the good stuff.

"However," Carlisle spoke in his patient voice, "there is nothing I can do now."

"What? Why!" Sam echoed my thoughts. "Why not? It would mean the world to Emily if she can walk down the aisle..."

Carlisle interrupted, "No. Other doctor's might but on this I stand firm."

"After all we have done..." I could hear the fury building in Sam's voice.

Carlisle's voice was cool with anger, "This is so, but despite what I owe you for the safety of my family, I will not perform elective surgery on a pregnant woman. It is an unnecessary risk."

Silence reigned as the pieces started falling into place. "Emily's pregnant?" Sam asked the obvious in bewilderment.

"Yes, at least two, maybe even three weeks. I thought you would have known." Carlisle sighed a long suffering sigh. "I forget how truly young you are. Haven't you noticed a change in her scent?"

There was no sound, I assumed Sam either nodded or shook his tremendous head. "Wow, I mean...just wow, we're having a baby."

"Babies," Carlisle corrected, "the hormone levels are high." Carlisle smoothly continued as though he didn't hear Sam's heart beat stutter. "Would you like to know the due date?"

"I guess yeah, sure." Sam couldn't very well say no.

"Alice will be able to give it to you as soon as Leah leaves the room. Keep in mind, it can change due to her physical condition but if we monitor her closely we can keep the tendency towards gestational diabetes in check. "

I took to my feet, wanting to run into the night. Emily looked at me in askance 'where are you going...room full of vampires here.'

"I'm just going to the kitchen to get a drink." A good cry was more like it. My feet felt unsteady as I navigated my way out the room. Rosalie's icy hand brushed the back of mine in cold comfort.

As I passed through the gathering of men, all eyes were on me but I didn't meet any of them. I kept my head held high concentrating on the wall from one point to the next until I was alone in the kitchen. I didn't want sympathy, or to face the apathy wondering what the big deal was anyway. One would make me cry the other would make me scream.

In the kitchen Nate wrapped me in his arms. I hadn't realized he'd followed me. He offered neither sympathy nor apathy. "They go on and on for ages. Can we leave now? I would much rather patrol." Tonight was our night off because Sam pointed out to Jacob that we needed down time. Jacob was our Alpha but he still listened to Sam in a lot of regards. Sam's young wolves were on their first overnight patrol so the forest should be fairly well covered without Nate and me.

"No, we can't go yet." I stepped out of his embrace. "I can't leave Emily alone for long...she's a little scared." I struggled to make my tone normal.

Nate lifted my chin to look me in the eye, "Beautiful, what is wrong?"

"Emily's pregnant." I reminded him.

"Si, I understand this, but why does this upset you so? Are you not happy for her?"

"Of course, I'm happy for them." Geez, I hadn't given Sam and Emily one thought. Was I that much of a selfish bitch? I could only think of me and my feelings first? "Okay, I haven't thought about them yet. Don't you get it? I'll never be pregnant. I will never carry our child in my womb." I looked into his deep brown eyes for understanding.

"It is a very good thing, is it not?" He smiled at me, actually smiled. Did he not see the tears standing in my eyes? Oh wait, I didn't have any there yet.

"Who knows what you and I would create?" He caressed my tummy, "It would rip and claw its way free, much like I did. Your bloody entrails would be everywhere. The _thing_ could phase itself free and make your whole body explode with its massive bulk." He threw his arms wide to emulate my childbirth explosion with an expression akin to glee.

"What?..." My mind raced for a reasonable explanation, "What have you been watching?" I was totally distracted from the pool of self pity I was trying to dive into.

His eyes lit up, "Emmett has been showing me classic movies like Aliens. It was eerily reminiscent of my own birth."

"Classics? Really now?" I pushed my own feelings aside for the time being to delve into the strange workings of my lovers mind. Nate and I talked for just a few moments about the garbage in his pop culture edu-ma-cation. It was enough to help me get myself together and get back in there with Emily.

I threw my lot in with Alice to get Emily and Sam married off ASAP. Alice insisted on throwing the wedding as a repayment to Sam for allowing her to leave on her quest to get Nate...which was the thing that may have saved all of our lives but by all means let's act like Sam had done her a big favor; he had perhaps saved her half an hour with not needing to reroute to get to the ocean.

Besides, who knew Emily better than me? She wanted a proper wedding; bridal party as big as the guest list and a real reception, not a trip to the courthouse and food back her own house. She didn't want to fulfill her parents expectations that she would shack up with that good for nothing boy and have his bastards OR he wasn't going to marry her until his brat was about to be born. Both were Young family traditions but Aunt Debra and Uncle George didn't like to talk about that. Parents, at least Emily's, could be such hypocrites. What did they think? That we couldn't count? George Jr was born in July and they married in May. Note Aunt Debra did not marry a vampire; George Jr was on the way out.

It wasn't too hard to talk Emily around; she wanted an Alice Cullen affair. Alice Cullen wanted an Alice Cullen affair so bad she could taste it. I wondered vaguely if it tasted like blood or was it even better. From the way Alice bounced with excitement I began to think this compulsion was stronger. She would get to dress not one but several people and coordinate them to the background. Emily's only hesitancy was she needed to talk it over with Sam. We didn't have an argument that could make her ignore this obligation. In true Cullen fashion no one told Emily she was pregnant, with her wedding hopefully just two weeks off she didn't need that kind of stress.

Sam and Carlisle were in deep discussion about Quileute herbal medicine based on Carlisle's observations from his very first visit dating back to before any white person had come to our lands. Sam had to be in La-La Land. Carlisle was better than any History Channel presentation. My personal theory was this was why there had been no bloodshed with our inclusion to the Union. Our elders may have thought the settlers were going to be as nice as Carlisle, thus ensuring an expectation of peace. Ephraim's treaty was because they found out not all 'pale faces' were like Carlisle. Damn homesteaders messed it up for the vampires.

If Sam would just tune in he could give Em the reassurance she needed. "Strangely enough I have found that folk remedies that work in one locality do not necessarily work in other places." Carlisle was in educator mode.

"Why do you think that is?" Sam was in the mood to be educated. I wished I could throw something at him to get his attention. What to do? What to do? Maybe Edward would take up the cause?

"Personally I believe it is because at the time Carlisle did his research people had no choice but to eat food that was either home grown or at the very least locally grown. This may have affected their physiology..." Gotta love it when Edward tuned you out. No help from that quarter.

Nate's voice cut across the conversation, "Sam, go tell Emily you wish to marry her Saturday, two weeks from now."

"You have a good point...What?" Sam cut himself off mid-sentence to ask.

"Emily wishes to marry you in two weeks. Go tell her you want this as well." Aww, count on my baby to be bored with their conversation and listen to mine.

"Are you sure?" Sam questioned but Jasper chose to answer this time.

"Yes, Alice has the caterer booked and flowers are being flown in from Amsterdam. I'm fairly certain you're getting married in a couple weeks. Why don't you go make it official? It would make Emily feel more settled and make it easier for Alice wrap up everything that doesn't involve you." One might think that everything in the wedding involved the groom but one wouldn't say so because that would be incredibly foolish. Have you ever seen a show called Groom-zilla? No and you won't. Sam needed to show up at the ceremony on time, little else would be required of him allowing Alice to at least stage everything ahead of time.

Sam immediately came in to give his assurance to Emily that two weeks was fine and of course he didn't mind if Alice threw the wedding, he wanted Emily to have whatever she wanted. I knew in other circumstance the blow to his pride wouldn't allow him to accept Alice's generosity but with babies on the way their wedding savings would be put to better use.

When Sam and Emily finally left I walked them out to the truck without Nate dogging my steps. I was thankful for an opening. "Thanks Sam, Em. I just wanted to say again how much I appreciate what you did for me and Nate today. That took a lot of courage." I wanted to say more but I also felt like I was intruding at this point. Sam couldn't take his eyes off Emily; there was palatable tenderness in his embrace. Emily's smile spoke volumes of joy, unrestrained joy.

"I have an imprint too Leah. I know how it feels to be separated...Being with Emily makes up for all the other parts. There is nothing more important ...," He trailed off staring at Emily and holding her all the tighter as she wound her arms around his waist, raising her face for the kiss that she knew was to come. For the first time I was happy for them, not resentful, not resigned to fate or just accepting. I was simply happy to see two people I had known my whole life happy together. My heart swelled with emotion seeing how much they loved each other. Sam helped Emily into the truck and I watched them pull off. I couldn't help but feel jealous. This was the way it was supposed to work; you fall in love, marry, have kids and live happily ever after.

When I turned around he was there to wrap his arms around me. Yeesh, what happened to imprint GPS? That was twice today. Imprinting wasn't supposed to work that way. I leaned into his embrace anyway, pushing the irritation aside.

"Those two, I would say were made for each other." Nate clasped his hands lightly around my lower back.

"Hey, that's not fair. I was made for you but they were made for each other. How did you come up with that?" I put my head on his shoulder and let my body relax into his waiting to be entertained.

"Everywhere we went today it was evident that your people rely on Sam. Question after question, they need something or want something from him. They want him to make decisions, they seek his council. They respect him beyond what one would expect in accordance with his age. Emily makes no demands on him."

I was more than a little surprised at his assessment. I had become accustomed to the tribe's reliance on Sam as a leader; it was part of the new normal. Should Grandma go into a nursing home? What college should Jon attend? What does Sam Uley think of this? The tribe accorded him as much respect as they did Billy or Old Quil. I wondered if Nahuel was that astute of an observer or if it was simply clearer to an outsider. "That would make Emily made for Sam, don't 'cha think?"

"Ah but Emily will fade into the background will she not, or be trodden upon? Have you not told me this in so many words, she puts herself last? You are quick to defend her, but you cannot always be there. The respect accorded to Sam as leader of your people will carry over to her."

"You have them in a neat tidy little bundle." I didn't want to think anymore, all I wanted to do was hold him, smell him maybe even taste him but we would have to see about that. Standing in the driveway was as close to alone as we had gotten since I woke up this morning. What a wonderful awakening that was.

"Now Beautiful, tell me how you feel and I will listen to what you have to say and try to understand your feelings." Nate's eyes focused on a distant point before continuing, "I will listen without interrupting."

He was speaking self-help manual to me yet he says he's Nahuel. Come on now. "Who are you and where is my Nahuel?"

"It is me. I am being sensitive to your needs. Tell me more about your desire to procreate." Nope, still not my Nate.

"Uh huh. Tell me another one." I grasped his hand in mine as we drifted to the forest...again. What were we? Bigfoot and wife? I wouldn't be surprised to meet Bigfoot one day. It wouldn't even be a shock, we would share a watering hole and maybe some nuts and berries like the woodland creatures we were and then go our separate ways. As much as I enjoyed Oregon I wanted to be comfortable, warm and dry.

"It was pointed out to me that I was callous towards you when you were trying to express your feelings, therefore I wish to make amends." We moved silently through the wet grass and I spared a glance at the glass wall wondering who put him up to this. "Esme and Rosalie together can be rather fierce," he answered me with a slight chuckle like he was joking but not really.

Did he realize he was saying he didn't want to hear how I felt, but rather felt obligated to hear me out? I hope he didn't realize it because I was going to tell him anyway. I wanted to talk out my feelings and I wanted him to understand.

We were passing the massive outbuilding known as the Cullen garage when Bella was suddenly there in front of us. No biggie, its par for the course when you run with vampires, if your guard is down it's always 'poof, I'm here two inches from your face.'

"Hey um Leah." Bella was hesitant in her approach with me. Perhaps Edward had shared my 'Everything is Bella's fault theory' with her or it could be my barely concealed hostility. "Look, I was wondering...if you want to take my car...the Ferrari or the Mercedes, if you want to get away for awhile...it would be okay."

I raised one eyebrow, "Just to confirm, were you discussing my internal ramblings with your husband and came up with this as a solution for a problem that was truly none of your business?"

Bella cocked her head to the side and smiled tentatively, "Yeah, pretty much," then said, "You bring it on yourself. Why are you so stubborn? Esme would love to give you and Nahuel your own place."

This had been a sticking point for the last week or more. People buy you a toaster for your new home; vampires buy you a house for your new toaster. I didn't have a toaster but I was pretty sure Esme would provide a color coordinated one if I let her. Honestly I think she would spoon feed me if I let her. In this Nahuel and I were in one accord, we refused the offer of a house. He had always worked to provide for himself and Huilen and didn't see any reason to change.

Now wasn't the time to get into that debate again. Ferrari key vs. Mercedes key was far more important. Black Pack members like me had a thorough appreciation of fine automobiles. It didn't take too long to make a choice, Nate and I pulled off after a hasty 'thank you' was thrown over my shoulder in Bella's general direction.

Bella's car drove like a dream. The engine was powerful and responsive and I'm sure there was a load of other stuff a true aficionado would appreciate but mostly I was stoked to be driving a Ferrari. I drove carefully at first getting a feel for the car.

"Babe, do you drive?" I asked, realizing I was totally in the dark about this. The more I talked to Nate the more surprises he had in store for me. When we first met I would have assumed he had never been in an automobile as part of his 'avoid human contact' preference but I was learning to take his age into account. A little of anything could be quite a lot when you account for 150 years of living.

"No, I have never operated a motor vehicle. Do you like this one?"

"Hmm, as far as cars go, it's top of the line. I like the way it looks and the way it handles," I gunned the engine to overtake a car in a no passing zone," and the speed is incredible."

"But Beautiful I run faster," he paused "so do you. All this weaving around curves seems so unnatural. Wherever we are going we could be there by now."

"Sure you're fast but I can't exactly ride you to work every morning or load you down with grocery bags, after we finally do have a home to shop for." Rachel did use Paul for her commute to Port Angeles everyday for a solid week. Even she got tired of brushing fur off her clothes and trying to figure out where to put the bags.

Nate shifted uncomfortably in his seat and pulled at the seat belt, "I suppose it is less tiring than running, but it is still rather slow."

"Dude, it doesn't get much faster than a Ferrari," I replied shaking my head at his comment it. It made me reflect on our differences. What was I in for? "Anyway, just keep an eye out for deer."

Nate asked in bewilderment, "Are you hungry again?"

"What?...No." Even the most basic things were going to be a challenge for us. "No, I'm not hungry. Hitting a deer is a pretty major accident, and I'm sure you've noticed we have plenty in this area. Sometimes they hang out along the roadside and the headlights startle them. Quite often they will leap out into the road to escape but instead crash into the oncoming car. When driving at night you have to stay aware of the roadsides to slow down and prepare to stop." I gave it to him almost word for word the way Daddy had explained it to me.

"That is why running is superior."

I groaned and looked at him to see mirth brimming over on his face.

"No Beautiful, I do understand, I was teasing. The animals are unpredictable and you have to react to them to protect the car. The car is delicate, unlike me..."

"Nate!" I yelled before he laughed at me. His laugh was the best, deep and baritone-y if I'm allowed to make up words and I am.

"Relax, I do understand the necessity of transportation, but I do not truly understand your reaction to Emily's pregnancy. You have known since we met that you would not be able to have children. Why is it still upsetting?"

"It's not the exactly the sort of thing that's going to pass overnight is it? I mean I lost my Daddy but I miss him every day, and I guess I always will. I think it's going to be like that; I don't think I will ever get over it." I focused straight ahead trying to sort out my feelings.

"I miss my mother too so I understand that the grief for your father will always be a part of you," his voice was low, gentle and soothing as lifted his hand to stroke my face, "but these are children you cannot know. They simply cannot be, will never be."

This was his version of compassion? I punched the gas because it was the only acceptable way to release the flash of anger. For once I wished we were training because I was pretty sure I wanted to smack him. "Can you try listening?"

I glanced at his profile in the silence of the car and realized he was giving serious thought to _trying _to listen. I should give up now. "Is it that hard? I do the talking and you let me."

He lifted my hand from the steering wheel, dangerous at 80 mph, but I allowed it. He held it between both of his before softly kissing my knuckles. "I will try. Tell me why it hurt you more tonight."

"Today was awesome, just having you on the res and hanging out at a typical Billy-style impromptu get-together finally had me feeling like I was fitting in again. I had my own man to fix a plate for."

"What about preparing food made you feel normal?" Nate was baffled. What was it about arranging chips, a bun-less hamburger and a roasted ear of corn on a plate and serving the lot with coffee that made me so happy? I would allow him this interruption.

"Remember when we called you guys to eat; your plates were waiting for you on the picnic table? I chose your food like Kim chose Jared's, Rachel put Paul's together, and Emily did the same for Sam. When I was doing that I felt like one the girls, normal and happy. No one was on eggshells around me. It was nice, to really be one of them, the happily imprinted. For one shining moment it was all right."

"Then at the Cullen's it was good, Em was planning her wedding and I was okay with it; bored, but not flinching on the inside and faking it on the outside." I fell silent for a moment trying to get my thoughts to the point where they could produce words that made sense.

"You know Emily and I grew up together? I talk about it all the time. We did everything together. In essence she's my sister. She a little older than me so some firsts she got to before me like getting boobs but I followed soon after. I guess having kids is one those things I thought we would do together too. I guess in all the baby doll playing we did, living in our imaginations and playing out the lives we wanted, I suppose I thought we would always be together. A part of me grew up expecting to raise our families together. That one day our daughters would be the best of friends, that our son's would be the bad ass kids causing trouble at the family reunion. It's not the life I'm not going to have. I will never be one of the mommies and I suppose I always thought I would be one. She is moving on but my life never will, will it? I'm never going to have normal am I? Am I making any sense at all to you?"

"No, none at all," was all he said.

"Care to explain?" I finally asked.

He questioned with frightening sincerity, "Am I allowed to do that while I am _listening?_"

"Yes, if I ask you to."

"I still contend having my child would be fatal even if you could conceive it but beyond that you do not like children."

I gasped but he went on. "You refer to them as little fuckers, brats and rugrats but usually little fuckers. These are not flattering words. Babies grow up into children, I am sure you are aware of this. If you do not like children I cannot fathom why you want a baby."

Oh man, he had me on that one. I couldn't argue, I knew he remembered every after work tirade word for word. Playing with one Nessie Cullen did not prepare me for enforcing order on a bunch of pre-k kids. After two days I gave up the Alice wardrobe and reverted to clothes I didn't mind having destroyed. Being a Beta in a wolfpack was the best preparation I had for being an assistant to a Pre-K teacher. I was able to go full speed for hours on end and give orders when the alpha didn't have the balls to. Energetic with a commanding presence still didn't stop that one kid from wiping his nose on my butt; he was like a ninja with it, a snot little ninja.

"It would be different with my own!"

"So you say but how can you know? Joham regrets my birth but I am here now." He said with a shrug as though Joham's attempt to kill him was a normal parental response. It dawned on me that for him that was normal. I had to chew on that, if I could have children did I really want to have them with him?

"That's beside the point. I know I can't have babies. I know that I shouldn't stop phasing and try to have your baby. I get that, but can you understand that's not how I feel? I want to be woman more than wolf. Don't you get it? I am a woman therefore I want a baby? Haven't you ever wanted something even though you knew it couldn't be?"

I slowed the car down as we passed a herd of deer standing near the road side and although I was loathe to admit it to myself the wolf in me salivated at the prospect of chasing one down and ripping into its hot flesh. When I picked up the pace I remembered to utter, "You may answer me."

"Thank you. I don't know the rules yet. Yes, I wanted a mate of my very own and I wanted to travel to see the world. Neither worked out. Ana was a failed experiment that I will regret forever." Sadness was evident in his voice and as an imprinted wolf I couldn't fail to hurt for him but as a woman I didn't fail to feel the ugly red burn of jealousy over Ana, his first love.

"Huilen and I never made it past Panama where we ran into larger groups of vampires. It is where I faced newborns for the first time. I did not think we would make it out of there alive. So yes, I understand longing. I will get a baby for you." He pronounced solemnly.

I knew I heard him correctly but sometimes you gotta ask, "Come again?"

"I will obtain a child for you. They are not that difficult to come across. I have a few places in mind already. We will have to journey but if this is what you want I will make it happen."

"Are you seriously talking about stealing a child?"

"Yes, but I could buy one if that would make you feel better." He continued thoughtfully, "We are not in a financial position for a major purchase so if you want a baby right away you will have to be okay with theft in this one instance. We could always make a donation to the orphanage later."

"You're a nut. You know that right?" I gave up. I could be having this conversation with a brick for the level of communication.

He leaned over to smooth my hair away from my ear and whispered, "Your very own Brazilian nut, no?"

I giggled, I couldn't help it. "You are so not Brazilian. If anything you're a coffee nut."

"Leah, the coffee is a berry not a nut. As I told..."

"Uh uh, no way, no how. You are not giving me another lecture on coffee. No way. That was a little joke and you know it." I knew everything I needed to know about coffee and a whole helluva lot more. If I had to I could grow it, harvest it, dry it and roast it and with my mate I could totally see the possibility that one day I might have to.

"I will let it pass this time. But coffee, I do not joke about." We laughed and I let it go. I knew I was upset rather than felt upset at this point. Nate didn't get why I wanted a baby and I had to admit to myself I wanted one because I couldn't have one. I thought it was a demon that I would have to face in some distant future but with Emily expecting it was a green-eyed monster I would have to look in the eye right now.

We drove around Forks looking at properties with 'For Rent' signs. I didn't have paper or pen to jot numbers down but Nate's perfect recall came in handy. We nixed the apartments and duplexes right away. We wanted a house for maximum privacy and a place that bordered the forest was going to be a necessity. We saw a few things that we could both live with.

When we returned to the Cullen's I was in a better place mentally. We retreated to the golden bedroom where Nate insisted I actually show him the dance steps from earlier in the day. To my surprise he really wanted to learn. We ended up down stairs with the rugs pushed back while I taught him Quileute native dance. It wasn't as good as sex but it was great fun. I was the expert and he was my willing pupil. Somebody was going to get a gold star tonight. Only Nate though, not the other vampires who joined my 11 p.m. dance class. Carlisle was fascinated with how the dances changed since he last saw them more than 200 years ago. For the others it was their first time seeing our dances. Please note, vampires are incredibly impressed with anything they haven't seen before. Alice, Rose, Esme and Emmett seemed to thoroughly enjoy matching my steps.

Later Nate gave a repeat show of his morning performance and it was...it was...there are no words. Incredible? Mind blowing? Touching? Touching, definitely. When we made love everything he did was because he wanted to. He wanted to worship at the altar of the wonder twins, his words not mine. He wanted to taste me so he had, not because he read in a book or heard from the fella's that chicks really dig it. He wanted pleasure from me and he wanted to please me. He was not out to prove he was a lover extraordinaire unlike some other people I won't mention...one Sam Uley. I could remember the relentless fumblings from the Uley lad when he discovered the purpose of the clitoris. UGH! Double UGH and I finally told him mine didn't work like that to get him to leave it alone. Did I say UGH?

Eventually we slept together in total bliss. I crept out of bed, leaving him sleeping peacefully, while I returned to the reservation.

"Sorry I'm late Mom. I overslept," I apologized coming through the door. "Is there anything left over?" Sunday breakfast was a tradition that Mom, Seth and I tried to maintain. Our lives seemed to be pulling us in different directions. Mom had her job, Council responsibilities and Charlie. I had work, patrols and Nate. Seth had school, patrols and Edward. It was a man-crush, bro-mance or something but he was dedicated. On Sundays we tried to be together just the three of us in our pjs for a few hours of catching up.

"Spare me the details of why you didn't get any sleep. Fix a plate, sit down, and tell me about this scholarship." Mom and Seth had moved to the living room to watch a little HGTV. House Hunters was our favorite.

Seth jumped in to gush about his favorite people in the world, "Oh Mom, it's the coolest. Edward said I could go to any college in the world. Harvard if I wanted and medical school too. Like anywhere I wanted. Any of us can. The kids who can't phase they benefit too but it's different. Sam would get an allotment to reward students as he sees fit. Not only the kids coming out of high school though. Even you Mom, if you wanted to train for a different career you could get money to go back to school. It's terrific."

Mom looked at me to confirm the validity of Seth's speech, "Ditto." I was busy stuffing my face with Mom's French toast and didn't want to say more. Seth had covered the bases.

Twenty minutes or so later I was on a full blown recounting of my conversation with Nate in the car. Mom was always interested in whatever he had to say. "So finally he offered to steal me a baby! It's like he never bothered to try to understand why I would want my own."

"Leah, you could be more understanding." Mom interrupted my tirade in which I was the victim of a cold-hearted vampire.

"Excuse me?" I thought I was being very clear on where her sympathies should lie.

"He remembers his birth. It is not an abstract concept. He remembers causing the death of his mother, a mother that from all accounts he loved. Can you not see where he would be pleased that you won't suffer the same fate?"

"Puh-lease, I could so handle having his babies. I'm pretty tough you know."

"Really and how tough would you be if you stopped phasing? And then there's the question of venom. You are immune to his, but that's no guarantee you would be immune to the child's venom." Mom started in on me. For once could she be on my side?

"That's not the point Mom. I wanted him to get where I was coming from...to understand what it meant to me"

"Yes, but did you try to get where he was coming from? You wanted to talk and explore your emotions but Leah; men aren't wired that way, not even your father. If you bring them a problem, they try to fix it. Nahuel offered to get you a child. I swear your daddy would have done the same. Sure, he would have said adopt but the principle would be the same. But tell me, did you take him up on his offer of getting you a baby right away?"

"Oh hel," I remembered who I was talking to, "...heck no. That's just wrong."

"If you truly wanted a baby you wouldn't be so concerned. The truth is you would be scared witless if you had a baby now. It's not what a girl your age should be doing anyway. Eventually you'll want to live a little, travel and party with your friends and finally enjoy your youth and I will tell you right now my diaper changing and late night feeding days are over, I would not be that type of grandmother." She shook her head dismissively and reached forward to get the remote and her mug from the coffee table.

When she moved I got a true feel for the atmosphere in the room and I didn't like it. "You sure about that? Your diaper changing days are over? Well guess who else is expecting a baby?"

Seth tried to call me down, "Don't be like that Leah."

"Emily. Your brother told me already." Mom answered confidently. "She and Sam are at the stage where they are settled enough to have children, but I don't expect to have to change too many diapers even if they have twins." Mom smiled in anticipation of her favorite child's offspring. "Leah, at some point you have to grow out of your jealousy of Emily." She flicked the channel to Food Network and settled into the sofa.

"I wasn't referring to Emily. Charlie Swan is expecting a bundle of joy." Mom looked back at me, clearly irritated but fuck so was I. "At least I'm assuming Charlie's the father," I taunted her further.

"Leah!" Seth warned me as though I was scared of his little punk ass.

"What are you talking about!" Mom fixed me with her cool angry 'stop fucking with me' glare. "Just spit it out!"

"You're having a baby, Mom. Congratulations. You can have your own damn grandchildren." I fled the room on Mom's gasp of disbelief and Seth's growl of pure anger.

In my room I flung myself on the bed. The full force of the emotions I couldn't explain to Nate earlier assaulted me. Without his stabilizing influence, the hurt and anger and bitter disappointment engulfed me, threatening to drown me. I clutched my pillow, breathing in his scent but nothing could hold the tide back, tears streamed down my face as sobs wracked my body.


	12. Chapter 12 The Edge

A/N: Many thanks to my beta Ash.

I would apologize for the long gap in updates but I fear I will be a repeat offender. Eventually you would stop believing me when I say sorry.

Disclaimer: Twilight still doesn't belong to me. Still. How can that be fair?

**Chapter 12 The Edge**

Mom rushed into my room, clumsily landing on top of me in the bed, "Leah, baby, I'm so sorry. I'm so so sorry." She pulled me tightly into her arms, rocking me back and forth. I felt the strength in her arms as she tried to shield me from the hurt in my heart with all the mother's love from her own. A mother's love, the kind I would never be able to share with my own child. A fresh wave of pain rolled across me.

She rocked me all the harder through my trembles, not fearful that the wolf would take me. She kept crooning in my ear that everything would be all right. The harder she rocked, the more the delicate scent of the very hormone that sent me over the edge filled my nostrils. Back and forth we moved, each movement causing me to sink deeper into my pit of despair.

My sobs were coming back to back. I had trouble catching my breath through the misery until Mom's legendary unflappable calm was broken and she sobbed silently, her tears wetting my neck. I tried so hard to bring myself under control for my mom's sake. If I could just focus on Nate, I was convinced I could calm down. His face swam before my tightly pressed eyes as I drew his scent into my lungs from the pillow in my arms. I thought of him and at the same moment an unbidden image popped into my head of a little boy, my own little boy, with curly black hair and dark brown eyes growing up loved and wanted. I could give him everything Nate missed, two loving parents and a home. Why was I doing this to myself? There was no point imagining a future I couldn't have. The more I tried to turn my mind away the more I saw. Me, standing in the sun with Nate's arms around me, his hands caressing our unborn child. .

Eventually there were no sobs, just silence as my body shook and trembled with grief for the life I wouldn't have. Mom held me secure in her arms, still not afraid the trembles would lead to my total loss of control. Mom loved me so much, so again for her I tried to gain control and failed. We lay there just crying together for I don't know how long until sharp raps on the front door drew our attention.

Mom whispered, "That must be Charlie. We were supposed to visit Nessie today." Three more raps sounded and it was apparent Seth wasn't going to get the door. Mom unwrapped herself from me and slowly climbed out of bed. "I'll send him away and be right back." She squeezed my shoulder and asked, "Baby is there anything I can do?" Mom's upset voice had me kicking myself for the possible harm to my unborn sibling, and again the grief spilled forth. Each and every thought was a spiral deeper into grief. I was pathetic and I knew it and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

I choked out the one word that I knew would help, "Nate."

Charlie's more urgent banging at the door drew Mom out of my room. My head began to clear once her hormones were in the other room and I struggled to get myself under control. _Come 'on Leah you can do this. Get over it already, you knew this. Stop!_

In the living room Mom's voiced was strained, "Charlie, I'm sorry I'm not ready. Today is not going to be a good day for me to go out."

"Sue, what's wrong? What is it?" The creak of leather and the rustle of soft fabric sounded on the air as Charlie pulled Mom into his arms. Her voice cracked as she forced the words out, "It's Leah." Mom, stronger and braver than anyone I knew, broke down and wept loudly on Charlie.

How could I worry my mom so? Mom needed my support now more than ever and here I was being a burden. I was thrown into a fresh jag of tears on the worthless selfish human I must be, completely unable to put someone else, not even my mother, first.

"What's wrong with Leah? Sue, tell me! Is she hurt?"

"It's ...it's..." She took a deep sniff, "She just wants Nahuel. She's really upset right now." Mom explained, leaving out any actual details.

"Why? What? Did he leave?" Charlie asked with concern about what he assumed was the worst thing that could happen to a girl.

"No, it's not that. She simply needs to be with him now and he can't come here...Charlie, it's complicated. She just needs him."

"Seth!" Mom yelled. "I'll get Seth to have Sam bring him over. Seth!"

"If he can't come here, I can take her to him. It would be faster. He's still at the Cullen's right?" Charlie sounded skeptical.

NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN  
The dream still lingered heavily as I emerged from a deep sleep. My mother's sweet voice soothed me in my warm cocoon. A slight pressure comforted me as she sang to me in the first language I would ever speak, but back then I could not make out the words, just the affection, the adoration and the only unconditional love I would ever know.

My cocoon was cramped and uncomfortable. Along with the affection in her voice I had learned to distinguish distress when she cried out every time I stretched my limbs. For her I tried to keep still. The pressure I had found comforting came again but stronger, making the tight space even more uncomfortable. As long as I could I fought the urge to move but the pressure grew stronger and stronger until I couldn't resist the urge to push back. Her cries made me anxious and I became convinced that if I could get out we would both be fine. I fought free, tearing and finally biting despite her cries. The dream always ended when I saw her lifeless bloody face. This morning instead of seeing my mother I saw my Leah's face; lifeless, frozen in pain and stained with blood.

I wrenched myself free, jerking my body into an upright position in bed while pushing my hair back. Even as I slept I was aware it was a dream, '_the dream_.' The dream had become a familiar feature of my life to be suffered through. It never failed to leave me in a well of sorrow. This morning the pain lingered stronger than it had in the last century.

Leah's scent surrounded me but she was gone as I expected. She told me she would return to her home this morning. I missed her surely but that couldn't account for this continued anguish.

Dressing quickly I left the room to join the others, feeling shaken and inexplicably sad. Perhaps it was the talk with Leah, of her desire to give birth to my child, which brought the strength of the memories back with such gut wrenching impact. There was no way I would allow Beautiful to suffer that fate.

Jasper winced when I entered the kitchen. "Whoa, there. Something's not right with you." He held out a hand to keep me from coming closer.

"Bad dream," I explained, still trying to shake the image of my mother's lifeless face mingling with Leah's in my mind.

"No," Jasper spoke thoughtfully, "It's not a bad dream, it's too strong." He pondered a moment longer and retreated further into to the kitchen to get away from me. I waited patiently, having become familiar with another person assessing my thoughts and feelings. There were no secrets here and frankly I was curious. "It's unnatural. I have never felt anything quite like it... No, unnatural is the wrong word. The tenor is familiar but it's not yours. That's Leah, that's Leah for sure. It's intense, she's devastated."

"She needs me!" Jasper's instantaneous iron hold around my chest stalled me in my progress to the door.

"Calm down Nahuel. Those are her emotions; she's not in any physical danger. Calm down." Jasper commanded again irresistibly.

"Leah needs me." I didn't struggle in his hold; I knew his strength was superior to mine. "What if it were Alice?"

He ignored my ploy, "You cannot go onto their reservation unescorted." Jasper's even voice steadily pulsed with his calming influence. "Let me see what I can do. I'll talk with Sam."

Calmness reigned as I had to give credence to the life that would be lost if someone tried to keep me from her. She would not like it if I killed or seriously harmed her pack brothers. I would not cause her more pain, not now. "I will wait." With that promise, Jasper released me.

I crossed tile floor of the kitchen to the coffee maker waiting with a full pot of fresh ground brew made just for me. I didn't even know who made it, but from the moment I began to stir someone was ready to care for me. The Cullens were too kind; I would not cause them trouble here. I simply could not get caught on the reservation. My chances were very good, this natural enmity they seemed so fond of speaking of did not seem to apply to me. My scent did not trigger the wolves' sense of danger. I poured a cup of coffee and relaxed against the counter sipping slowly, waiting for Jasper's eyes to stray off of me just once. I did not need a full second.

A full minute passed as I grew impatient for Jasper to have a vague lapse in attention. I began assessing the distance between me, the door and a wary Jasper. We would have gone on like this for at least another thirty seconds before I made a break for it if Seth had not burst through the kitchen door.

He looked around wildly before crossing the room quickly and grasping me by the shoulder. "My sister! My sister needs you. You have to come with me. Now!" He tugged my arm forcefully as though I needed the encouragement. I led the way out of the house.

LLLL LLLL LLLLL LLLLL LLLLL LLLLL LLLLL LLLLL

The glass of the car window was cold beneath my head. I stared at the bleak rainy landscape of Forks passing by. Laying down on the backseat had only made my head hurt more so with great effort I had pulled myself into a seated position. I was all sobbed out. Silent tears rolled down my face. I didn't bother to wipe them away anymore, they would only come back. The gray sky and sheets of rain reflected my mood perfectly. Now nature chose to be on my side.

Maybe Nature hated me. What had I done so wrong that I was to be perpetually punished? I didn't search for an answer. I didn't want to think anymore, that way madness waited. Forever I would be a wolf, an unnatural creature straddled between two worlds, not belonging to either.

Mom and Charlie sat on the front seat silently, per their no chatter policy. Mom glanced at me from time to time to say, "You okay baby," or "We'll be there real soon." I smiled grimly. Real soon with Charlie at the wheel? Charlie spoke to the driver's education class every year about safety first on our constantly rain slick curving roads. He wanted to get me to Nate but he wanted to be sure I would be in one piece upon arrival. I smiled again and at once realized it was a real smile.

"Hey Charlie," I leaned forward to rap on the metal grid to get Charlie's attention. His eyes flicked to mine in the rear-view mirror. "Can you roll the window down back here?"

His eyes questioned my wisdom at an open window on a rainy winter day then they flicked to Mom who nodded her approval. He cracked the passenger side rear window. "Charlie, can you put it down all the way? It's really hot and stuffy back here." I fanned myself for dramatic effect to convince Charlie that the backseat was a whole other tropical world. Charlie rolled both windows down halfway. "Can you put them down all the way?"

"Sorry kiddo, that's as far as they go," Charlie apologized. "Do you want to stop and get out?"

"No, I'm good besides it's raining," I explained despite the water streaming into the backseat. Charlie shrugged, dismissing my sanity as the cruise approached Forks.

My smile had not led me wrong, in the next ten seconds Nate was there wrapping me in his arms and kissing my still wet cheeks. His arms forced the misery out as his lips literally kissed my boo boo better. I wriggled against him just enough to free my arms so I could hold him as tightly as he was holding me. We stayed wrapped in each other, not speaking. I listened to the beat of our heart, for surely it could only be considered one now, vaguely wondering how deep the connection went.

As the car continued its journey I heard Mom say, "Charlie, stay calm and keep your eyes on the road. Nahuel is in the back seat with Leah. You may roll the windows up now, I'm getting chilly." Listening to the hum of the windows I wondered if Charlie stayed as calm as he was ordered to.

"How did you know?" I whispered into his ear still clinging tightly to him.

"How could I not know?" He questioned. "It was very difficult getting to you. I kept over shooting the car. It moves so slowly."

I laughed weakly but happily and kissed Nate's cheek, "You're such a nut."

My eye was caught by the twitch of Charlie's moustache in the rearview mirror as he actually smiled. "Thanks for coming son."

Nate didn't take his eyes off me as he spoke, "You are welcome Chief Swan. Thank you for bringing her to me." Nate leaned back onto the other side of the car, dragging me into position to lay my head on his chest. Until the car pulled to a stop in front of the Cullen mansion he touched me steadily, smoothing my hair, dropping kisses on my forehead, rubbing my arms and back, constantly making me feel safe and secure, protected even from my own inner demons.

When we approached the house, arms still wrapped around each other, I could easily visualize Esme's arms extended out to hold onto me as long as possible. It seems we had run out of time to find a place of our own.

Nate settled on the front porch steps with me firmly at his side. He held onto me as though I might try to escape. He should know there was no chance of that. "I cannot continue here like this, with me here and..." I shushed him as Mom and Charlie skirted around us on their way in the house. Poor Mom, she still had her robe on over her sweats. She had only slowed enough to put on shoes when she hustled me out of the house. I didn't have on shoes but honestly I didn't need them and we had no time to make concessions for the sake of appearances. When we left home I only wanted Nate and she only wanted me to be better.

When the door closed Nate spoke urgently. He looked me in the eye, his thumb sweeping over my cheek, "You are too far from me, inaccessible on your reservation; I can't bear the thought of you in such pain again."

"It won't be much longer. You start work in the morning." It seemed like forever. We would still have to find a place and present a deposit and rent, not to mention furnishing a home.

"Leah, this life is not for you. Come away with me. I will take care of you in my world," he pleaded with me. I wouldn't be moved and truthfully, although my emotions stabilized, I wasn't really there, at least not for a conversation like 'leave the continent and live...' Where the hell did he live? Damn, I still hadn't gotten around to asking that yet.

When we went into the house, surprisingly the focus was not on us. Nate and I drew up short at the sight of Sam and his usual backup dancers, Paul and Jared, talking in the media room. Across the room Sam's very young wolf, David, was sprawled on the sofa. Looking closer David's face was drawn with pain even in his sleep and he wore a sling on his right arm.

Would it ever end? Quickly I worked out the likely scenario. Without Nate's enchanting, irresistible scent in the forest the other pack had finally seen some action and it had not been pretty.

"What happened?" Nate questioned Sam directly.

"Mitchell, David and Paul were running together right before daybreak when they encountered two, uh, enemies." Although the conversation was hushed we avoided the 'v' word with Charlie in the house.

"Were both enemies dispatched?" Nate asked, still holding me tightly grasped; already we were being pulled to that other side of our existence. I didn't want to deal with it now. Hell, couldn't I sort me out first?

"Were there any losses?" Nate continued to probe after Sam's affirmative answer.

"No," Sam answered gravely, "No casualties but the injuries were serious. We were lucky this time. There were two of them..." Sam continued to speak but I couldn't force myself to be present for it. Internally I knew this should be my reality check, the moment where I had to put Leah aside and focus on the big picture, I am a wolf therefore people live. Isn't that how I blew it off to Esme? I am so full of it. I didn't feel at all brave, bold or anything other than pathetic and fragile.

"Where were the invaders encountered?" Nate rubbed my back in a soothing pattern but he was obviously concerned about the where, when and how of the first attack to occur that wasn't directly aimed at us.

Sam's voice continued to wash over me as I hid from the world in Nate. I pressed my face into his neck and closed my eyes. Couldn't I just have a single moment to deal with me? My freak show world wouldn't even allow that.

Nahuel interrupted Sam's detailed recollection with a voice more gentle than he normally used with Sam. "May we speak more on this later?" He stroked my back again before saying, "Now is not a good time for us."

"Hey, what's wrong with Leah?" Sam asked as though surprised to find me there. He had enough on his mind to not have to include me in the mix.

I unfolded myself from Nate, "Nothing, I'm fine..."

Nate cut across me, "She is not fine. She is hurting deeply in her soul." He placed his hand over my heart to indicate the location of my pain. Even as the warmth of his palm heated my skin I knew the ache was gone. My nerves were on edge and I felt as though my skin was brittle at the effort of holding me together, but I was not in pain. My time on the edge of sanity was over.

I struggled to assert my beta persona, "Did we locate where the interloper came from?" I turned to face Sam and company representing my pack in Jacob's absence.

"Oh come off it!" Rosalie sucked her teeth loudly behind me. "Leave the boys to their war games." Her hand closed around my wrist in a shocking icy grip. Sure, I was used to vampire touches but usually they were the fleeting touches of an exam, a squeeze of comfort, not this full contact. It shocked my senses. Instinctively, I bristled as Rose pulled me to her.

Nate reacted by snatching me back to him, ready to protect me. Before he opened his mouth Rose held up one hand to silence him but spoke to me, "You're not ready for this, not yet."

Often I thought of vampires as cold, frozen unchanging creatures except the eyes. They always told a story; wild and feral, cold and cruel, or desperately hungry. Rosalie's eyes spoke of understanding, empathy and compassion. "Come with me and leave them to this. Heaven knows they can use some non-dog input." She ended with an insult but her heart wasn't in it, there was no sneer and she didn't even whip her hair for emphasis.

Nate swept his finger along my jaw line to position my face so he could look into my eyes. Wordlessly he asked if I was okay with leaving his side. Rosalie's words meant little to him; he wanted to know from me, my body to his, my eyes to his, that I was okay. He would stay here and perform my duties, fulfilling my obligations if I could muster the resolve to actually be fine. There would be no bullshitting him. My eyes locked with his and he nodded slightly, "You may go."

A short bark of laughter erupted from between my lips. "As if I need your permission."

His lips pulled back to show his even teeth in a smile of joy. "You do; after all, you are mine," he rested his forehead against mine to kiss my lips briefly.

I patted his cheek, "No, babe, you're mine," and kissed him back quickly.

"We're back to that again?" Rosalie spoke impatiently; she had not relaxed her grip on my wrist.

Nate released my waist but didn't break contact completely, "Beautiful, if you need me, call me."

Rose took advantage of his loosened hold, whisking me free and added, "If she needs you, you'll know." That indeed was the truth, if I needed him he would be the first to know.

"Watch the fingers Blondie, you're gonna bruise me," I complained while following Rosalie away from my wolf world.

She hustled me into her bedroom and deeper until we were in front of a massive vanity with a huge mirror. Rose pointed to the dainty pink chair, stating imperiously, "Sit, Leah, sit!"

I arched one eyebrow, "Rose, you do realize I can take you, right?"

"Possibly," she conceded, "but why end my torment at once when you and the mutts can drop by daily to prolong my misery into eternity?"

"Good point." I sat down and scooted my butt around a little for emphasis. "It's going to be ages before my scent leaves your room."

"Exactly, I'll have to throw that chair out, antique or not. I've had it since '53."

"It looks very nice, you've kept it very well." I felt sorta guilty but not really.

"Emmie was fully trained by then and I could finally have nice things again. He was a right terror at first, smashing and breaking everything. Not on purpose, but this life is an adjustment."

Rose placed her chilly hands on my shoulders and met my eyes in the mirror, "Leah, I don't have any magic answers for you or any profound words of wisdom but if you want to talk I'll listen."

"That's really kind of you. I don't know what to say... Thank you." I looked at Rosalie, a cliché of blonde beauty, frozen in time, offering me a sympathetic ear. I couldn't turn to my normal bolt holes. I couldn't burden Emily and I shouldn't have burdened Mom. My own pack would be useless. Nate gave me what I needed, plucking me from the pit of despair by just being there, but he absolutely didn't understand. What harm could it do to talk to Rosalie? Hell, if I didn't tell her Edward would probably break it down for her later and that wouldn't help me get anything off my chest. I began, "Logically, I don't know why..."

"It's not about logic," Rose interrupted.

"True. I don't know exactly why I want a baby, I just do. I'm not really the nurturing type. Most of the time I can barely tolerate the kids in my class."

"Most of the time I can barely tolerate people in general." Rose admitted. She picked up a brush, "Do you mind?"

"Go right ahead." She brushed my hair as I continued to speak. Nate being so close sealed the pain off, but he was far enough away that I could express myself.

"Children to me represent progression. I think yesterday was the first time I really faced forever. It's hard to wrap my mind around all the time ahead of me with no change, nothing to look forward to."

In the mirror I glanced at Rose who nodded thoughtfully while I continued. "The idea of continuing just as I am without changing scares me."

"You change all the time," Rose looked at the quizzically. "I am a creature without change; by contrast you represent constant change." Rose tended to listen like Nate, interactively.

"What are you getting at?" I asked her.

"Leah," Rose stopped the brush. "You change all the time. Your hair grows at least an inch a week; you break down and restructure all the time. You change too much to get pregnant much less carry and I can't change at all. We are at different ends of the spectrum." Rose shrugged. "Either way we can't have babies."

"Nope we can't," I agreed with her. "This may sound silly but I guess I always thought that if I imprinted that it would be my happily ever after. Magically everything would be better. It worked for my brothers. Once they imprinted it was like everything was right with the world. Do you know what I mean?" Evidently I liked interactive listening.

Rose stopped brushing my hair and announced, "There's no help for it." She studied my hair with a look of disgust before saying, "I can honestly say I don't know what it's like to imprint, but..."

I held up a hand to stop her, "If I have my vampire gossip correct, Seth keeps us informed, you glimpsed Emmett being mauled by a bear and instantly knew you had to save him. You carried his bleeding body for over one hundred miles to be changed into a life that, by all accounts you hate because you absolutely couldn't let him cease to exist."

Rose looked at me hard in the mirror before smiling. "So maybe I do know what it's like to imprint. That's what it's like. Hmm, I've never thought about imprinting in those terms." Rose stated ponderously, before moving around me to open a drawer at the vanity. She whipped out a pair of scissors.

Blades in the hand of a vampire made me jumpy. Those instincts I had suppressed with mind over matter as Nate preached were popping to the surface. Rose noticed, "Relax, you need a hair cut desperately."

I focused on calming my nerves and gained control effortlessly. "Why do you even have scissors, you don't cut your hair." At least I figured she didn't, her hair didn't change either.

"Bella's split ends were driving me crazy." She cringed in distaste, "She really let herself go while we were gone... not that she did all that great a job before we left." I nodded in understanding and smiled a snarky spiteful smile. Rose caught my eye and we giggled the mean spirited giggle of pretty girls laughing at those foolish girls who didn't understand that looks were power.

Rosalie started snipping before she spoke again softly, all trace of levity gone, "Leah, I do understand the happily ever after expectation. Do you know my whole story? My life was charmed. I was precious and petted by my parents, especially by my mother. She expected me to make a match that would give her the place in society that she felt she deserved. I expected Royce to be my happy ending. He was my ending, that's for sure."

A fierce look crossed her face and I was almost afraid to ask but I went right ahead, "Royce?"

"Oh really, Edward couldn't share that with Seth?" To my horror she related the entire story of being gang raped and left for dead in an alley by her fiancée and his 'upper crust' friends. Talk about betrayal. There were a lot of things worse than having your boyfriend dump you for your cousin. A lot worse, miles apart in worse, we were talking North Pole, South Pole difference in degrees of worse.

"Oh God, Rose that's awful! I'm sorry." I exclaimed.

"Be still. You better not mess up my work." With a firm hand she pressed me back into her chair. "It was a long time ago and I killed each and every one the bastards. Each and every one had a slow and painful end. I didn't spill a single drop of blood either." She smiled with remembered satisfaction.

"Good for you!" I shouldn't advocate murder but they clearly deserved it. If they had lived on the reservation I would have pushed them over the border so she could get them. "Wait, you didn't drink a drop of their blood? Not even one?"

"Absolutely not!" She shuddered at the thought. Nate wasn't kidding about blood not being the most important thing to a vampire.

"I thought Royce was my happily ever after and he wasn't. By the time I found Emmett I had a chance to really contemplate the forever before me and be terrified of spending it alone. To be honest, when I first saw him he reminded me of a baby I once knew. Emmett gave me reason to want to exist."

"You know Rosa-bell," She cringed at the moniker and I grinned, "My life was charmed too. My mama and daddy loved me. My daddy spoiled me rotten, he didn't mean any harm but all the same he did. Seems like he would have noticed I was wolfing out but his health was slipping fast in those last months..." I went off on that tangent wondering why, as close as Daddy and I were, how could he not have noticed my growth spurt? Tangents set the tone of how the conversation flowed. I talked and rambled, Rose listened interactively and passively at times. We had more in common than I would have guessed. Not just our uncivilized lovers but our 'before' lives too. We were the pretty girls who knew it, we were the popular girls who wielded power... we were girls who expected life to stay easy and perfect. If, for some reason, our natural lives had crossed and we were peers, we still wouldn't have been friends. We would have been in competition but we understood each other.

We talked for ages; I believe it was therapeutic for both of us. Rose relived the fuzzy memories of her youth, her family, and her life as we both contemplated a future that scared us with its sheer abundance. We talked ourselves out and I felt all the better for it. I whined, bitched and moaned as much as I wanted to. Did Rose listen to every word? I have no idea but she didn't suggest stealing a baby or tell me to suck it up. She kept the scissors moving and made the right soothing noises at the appropriate times.

Finally the scissors stopped moving and Rose switched the flat irons to off. "I'm done. Your hair is beautiful, a real work of art." She passed me a hand mirror, "Lovely isn't it?"

"Very lovely," I agreed with Rose since she didn't leave any other option.

"Yes, it is. It will grow out in about a week. Come back for a trim."

"Sure, I mean if you," my stomach growled loudly, insisting on having its say in the conversation. I paused; to talk over her would be rude. When my stomach finished I said, "If you don't mind."

"Mind? No. Your hair... and how do I say this politely?" Rose pondered aloud.

"And you care about politeness since...," I reminded her.

"True. Your hair was a total mess. It offended my sensibilities. Now, if we could do something about the smell," she finished, scrunching her nose for effect.

"Yes, if only," I wrinkled my nose disdainfully, though the truth was my nose was beginning to burn. Admittedly, it was taking longer and longer for that reaction to begin.

"I don't smell except to the evil. My scent is like holy water to your kind." I shook my freshly cut hair in her direction to waft my scent into the air, because really, I don't know when to stop. "Seriously though, is this the first real cut you've ever done?"

"Yes, I did a great job if I do say so myself." Rose reminded me yet again. I wanted to give her shit about being so cocky, but she had crafted each strand of hair to frame my face just so to emphasize my cheekbones and my eyes. The back was tapered, not too severely but still with an edge. I wanted to find a flaw but sadly it was perfect.

"Yeah, it's gorgeous and all that. Where did you learn to cut hair?"

"The internet and I bought a book a couple weeks back." Rose made her way to the window. "You really stink, a lot."

"The internet? Like YouTube? You could have really fucked my hair up."

"I couldn't make it worse and besides," Rose gave me the hair toss, "I don't do fuck ups."

My stomach began to call me forward and I prepared to make my excuses to Rose. "Rose, I could stand here and trade insults with you all day but I'd rather thank you and keep it moving."

She raised a hand to shush me, "Leah, listen. Your life is not over, you have many years to share with your family and those who you love. Don't ruin it by worrying about a future that's not here. Live in the moment."

Before I could remind her that she didn't have any profound words of wisdom, the door flew open. Esme barreled toward me with a plate loaded with roast beef sandwiches in one hand and a glass of tea in the other. Bella glided in behind her, going straight to the windows, throwing them all open wide. Seriously, a chick could get used to service like this.

Mom came into the room last. She had removed her robe and looked relaxed sporting just her sweats. She stood before me assessing my face, "Are you okay Leah?"

I nodded, wanting to say more but the half of roast beef sandwich in my mouth made it impossible.

Unfortunately, Mom kept talking. "I'm sorry you had to find out about my relationship with Charlie like this." Was she fucking kidding me? I knew from the first time she came home smelling freshly scrubbed with Irish Spring and if I'm not mistaken, Head and Shoulders shampoo plus that tiny hint of Old Spice to let me know there was a good night kiss. Did she think that I thought she spent nights there holding hands being silent with Charlie?

I swallowed quickly, "Mom, I've known since Christmas, well the day after. I'm okay with it. Perhaps," I couldn't resist a little teasing, "Perhaps you should have considered precautions. You're never too old to practice safe sex." I took another huge bite. Crying had taken a lot out of me.

Instead of getting a rise out of Mom as I hoped she responded like our roles were reversed, "I know, I know, it was just the one time without a condom," Oh God, no! It was so much easier to hear that word when Mom was telling me to use one rather than hear her admit she forgot one.

"Mom, you don't...," I wanted to let her know that no explanation was necessary, but she didn't understand. She cut me off.

"It had been such a long time for both of us. You know your father's health problems... it had been two years, closer to three... I stopped taking the pill... I didn't even think about those things anymore... and well, Charlie is a confirmed bachelor..." I looked for and caught Bella's eye. I needed to know someone else was as freaked out by this conversation as I was and Seth wasn't in the room. Bella would have to do. She was standing by the window lightly chewing her lip and fidgeting. One activity dangerous for a vampire and the other unnecessary meant she too had no desire to have any insight into our parents' sex life.

"We were both so alone. Worried too, and so scared. We needed each other. Do you understand?" Mom asked.

I chewed double-time. -Oh God-if I didn't answer she was going to keep talking.

"Sue, no one's judging you." Esme's clear sympathetic voice came to my rescue.

"Yeah, you make my Dad happy. That's all that matters." Bella smiled sadly, leaving the rest unsaid. She was glad Charlie would have a family when she finally had to leave. But, and that's a big ass BUT... no one was going to give a shit about Charlie's happiness in the face of the delicious gossip of Sue Clearwater pregnant with the chief of police's baby less than a year after her wonderful (his goodness would grow with every re-telling) husband passed away. People would speculate that something was going on before that honorable, kind-hearted man had passed (see it was already growing). Surely Bella knew the world didn't revolve around her. I mean mine did, obviously, but not everyone else.

With my mouth clear I attempted to take control. "Mom, of course I understand. Charlie cares about you." Now for the obvious change of subject, "Not that I mind but, what are you still doing here?"

"I didn't want to leave without checking in on you. You were so..," Mom gestured with her hands unable to put 'this close to a nervous breakdown' into words. There was no other description. I could still see the cliff in my mind, the plunge into a total loss of sanity was so very close I almost tipped over.

Not one to linger on the past, Mom slipped back into the briskness that was more comfortable for both of us. "Besides, Charlie is talking shop. I couldn't drag him away if I tried."

My eyes rolled from side to side taking in both Bella and Esme. "What? Come again?" Surely it must be generalized occasional break-ins and what not. Bella's eyes and Esme's both slid past mine. Not good, not good at all.

Mom sighed with resignation, "Well if you must know..."

What I must know was confirmed the second I stepped from Rose's room and only grew clearer as I moved swiftly to the lower level.

"What you have to understand is that setting an example is crucial. The example is the deterrent." Charlie was speaking confidently to a rapt male audience with my Nate at the center. According to Mom, Nate asked for Charlie's advice as an officer of the law on 'certain patrol and crime prevention issues.' My hand slipped into Nate's as I silently took my position at his side.

"So as I was saying in this particular instance, not that I know the details," Charlie scooted in his disclaimer, making eye contact with Sam whose jaw was set, Edward whose face was frozen and Nate whose expression was serious and assessing, "You need to make an example of a transgressor. It's like speed traps. You could lock all the speeders up and people still come racing through the town but you write them a ticket instead. They go forth and tell the world that Forks has speed traps, slow down in Forks, speeding is not tolerated in Forks. You get me?"

"Aye, uh Sam, Billy told me about that that meth dealer trying to operate on your reservation. You warned him right? You could have done otherwise," Charlie faltered slightly but a quick glance at Edward told me what I need to know. Charlie knew what we were capable of. Sam could have made that dealer disappear without a trace. I was learning to read faces by reading Edward, who had in turn become so comfortable with his mortal enemies that he didn't put his guard up. Good lord, we were one step away from singing together in a circle holding hands. Perish the thought.

Sam answered Charlie in the affirmative letting Charlie proceed with his lesson, "That dealer may have gone on to deal another day but he didn't come back to La Push and more importantly he spread the word to his kind that you can't deal in La Push. You haven't had one incident since then. You might one day but that little warning worked. You get me?" Charlie asked again gruffly.

"Yeah- 'Operation Run Tell That' starts tonight." Emmett chortled and fist pounded with the now present Jacob. Laughing matter it was not, but having some sort of plan of action to stem the steady stream of hostile vampires made us all feel better.

"Thank you Charlie for your input," Edward began graciously, "Put that way it makes perfect sense. I see where Bella gets her brilliant mind." Charlie flushed with pleasure, whether from being a contributor to the secret world or being called brilliant I wasn't sure.

"Both." Edward blurted apropos of nothing, only to clumsily follow up with, "you and Sue are welcome to stay for lunch, Esme is making enchiladas."

Charlie's eyes went to Mom's for permission. How'd she do that? "No, Sue and I will be leaving shortly." Mom had drifted down at a more sedate pace but just like Bella, Rose and myself she had taken her place with her man.

"Sam, your pack is welcome to stay for lunch, as well." Edward offered.

Sam shook his tremendous head. I bet that thing had gravitational pull. Poor Emily was going to have to give birth to his kids. I cringed for her instead of being filled with envy and sadness. Nah, it was going to take a C-section to get those heads out. "Thank you but no. I need to get this kid home and come up with some reasonable explanation as to why he was out all night." Sam sighed, stressed.

"Look, how about I run him over in the squad car and explain to their folks that he was up to some youthful shenanigans and I called you to resolve it in a non-official capacity. Sound good?"

Sam agreed while Bella and I exchanged incredulous looks. Charlie was really getting it, rolling with this supernatural lying at the drop of a dime thing.

"Wait, before you go, I need to give you instructions on David's care," Carlisle claimed Sam's attention.

"Na-u-Hu-ue-el," Charlie called Nate with the customary make it up as you pronunciation plus extra syllables. He usually did one or the other; both must mean this was important. "I couldn't help but over hear you say couldn't continue here. I want you to reconsider... if you're worried about overstaying your welcome here, I have an extra bedroom. It's yours if you want it." Okay maybe Charlie didn't get it.

"But Dad, no!" Bella whined, "He can't stay at your house."

"Bella," Charlie was shocked, "You should understand. What if Edward had a single solitary friend, outside his family? Just one? Say, if he and Jake were as close then as they are now. He could have stayed here and we could have avoided that whole cliff jumping mess. I almost had you committed. Do you understand? No, we can't let that happen. Not again, not if I can help it." Charlie glanced at me, his face haggard momentarily, and I knew he was recalling the state he found me in this morning. I couldn't get it together enough to climb from the bed. Together they had worked to tow me free. Mom had attempted to take the Nate scented pillow from my clutch and I freaked out, well, freaked out more. Charlie made soothing sounds and promised the pillow was mine as long as I wanted it. Between the two of them they got me to the car, my pillow was still in there. When boyfriends leave girls go crazy, absolutely certifiably crazy.

"But you don't understand Dad!" Bella pleaded with Charlie and he truly didn't.

"You had Edward there every night! I can't believe you Bella!" Uh, uh it wasn't me. Nope, not Leah. I'm not fond of the girl but even I wouldn't tell that. That was my little brother, Seth, secret teller extraordinaire, in protective mode.

Seth was pissed. Oh no. Nature abhors a vacuum and an angry Seth. An angry Seth threw the whole room off. Jagged conversations broke out across the room. The present Cullens talked all over each other about Nahuel's acceptance into their household as long as he wanted to stay. Mom tried to calm Seth, Edward tried to calm Bella while she sputtered through an explanation that she wasn't scared of what Nate would do but the trouble he attracted.

I couldn't help but rejoin that he didn't attract any more trouble than she did. The difference was Nate could handle his shit. She came back at me with the sleep thing and perhaps that's why I wasn't focused on Nate when he spoke to a purple faced Charlie. "That is very kind of you but certainly you will be moving to the reservation will you not?"

"What? No. What are you talking about?" Charlie looked confused.

"When you and Miss Sue marry you will make your home on the reservation." Nate pressed. Bella and I were still exchanging words.

"You're getting ahead of yourself son... Is this true Bella? You had that boy in your bed, under my roof at night?"

"It wasn't like that Dad." Bella defended only to be loud talked by me.

"It was exactly like that! He practically lived there!"

Nate patiently explained to Charlie, "Miss Sue is having your child. I assume you will marry very soon."

"What?" Charlie exploded, then calmed in the surprised silence of the room. The volume dropped to negative one. The silence was confirmation to Charlie that indeed he was the last one in the room to know but he had to ask anyway, "Sue is this true? Are you...?"

"Yes, it's true. I'm pregnant," Mom stated quietly with confidence.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Charlie ran his hand through his hair at a loss.

Mom grabbed his agitated hand. "I only found out this morning shortly before you arrived. I haven't had a chance to mention it to you in private."

My own hand tightened on Nate's as I jerked it to get his attention. I arched one eyebrow to question him. He kissed my cheek and whispered in my ear, "Charlie is not a child."

Charlie freed his hand from Mom's grasp to rub both hands up and down her arms, I guessed to check if all of this was real. Welcome to the club buddy, nothing makes sense anymore and it's always real. "Don't cha need to see a doctor first just to be sure?"

"Sue is pregnant." Carlisle called out for an even further perplexed Charlie who in his ignorance probably assumed there should be some sort of an exam, not simply visual contact with a doctor. "I'll write her a prescription for prenatal vitamins before you two leave."

Poor Charlie was stunned speechless which I could completely understand. Nate didn't. "So you see, you will be relocating to the reservation."

"No!" Bella shouted in ringing tones as access to her father was being cut off when she always thought the timing would be her decision.

I actually felt bad for her and started to say something when Sam interjected, "I'll be glad to help you move. We can use my truck."

Paul volunteered, "I'm free the rest of the day, I'll help and Jared, too. It won't take any time."

Bella opened her mouth again only to be cut off by Edward. "It's for the best love." A statement that placated Bella but not Charlie.

"Wait just a damn minute. Slow down. I'm not going anywhere Bells." He reassured his daughter, reaching out to remove her from her husband's arms. "I'm not going anywhere." Charlie hugged her lightly and let go, I swear so he could ignore the impossible to ignore, coldness of his daughter's body. I realized Nate was right. Charlie was not a child nor was he ignorant, neither was Bella. He was in heightened danger just by knowing us, and not telling him anything didn't decrease that danger one bit.

"It's for the best Dad," Bella conceded.

Following Nate's lead I spoke, "You will be safer, that's our only concern here," lending my voice to the general concern to safeguard Charlie. We never let protection for the reservation lapse and although the Cullens had again extended their stay in Forks, at some point they would have to move away. We wanted Charlie on the res.

We called that wrong. WRONG in all caps. Scream it out loud WRONG! Do you know what else Bella got from her Daddy? Stubborn as all get the fuck out. No, wrong words because this kind of stubborn wouldn't do just that, Get the Fuck out. Charlie was staying put. Even when Mom said, "The kids are right Charlie. It would be better if you came to the reservation."

To our utter surprise he said "No." Not an emphatic no. Just a simple no that couldn't be argued with. It didn't give reasons. It stood there in the room. Charlie is an officer of the law, as in sworn to protect and serve the sleepy little town of Forks. We overlooked this minor detail. He might not know the specific danger but he sure as hell wasn't going to run away and hide and leave the town unprotected.

Jacob told us later that Edward told him Charlie was more clever than we gave him credit for. He reasoned that as long as he was in Forks, that we would keep him safe there by providing protection for his beloved town. Clever Charlie, very clever but not wise because he was taking a vampire home to live with him.

A vampire and a werewolf, actually. Because despite the ruckus he had already caused, Nate wasn't shy about admitting the problem was he needed to be with me. Charlie had seen me this morning; he didn't hesitate to welcome me in his home.

Bella had protested mostly amused, "Dad, you're going to let them live with you? They aren't even married."

"Evidently I normally have a young unmarried couple under my roof; I'm just setting things back to rights. Sam, is the offer of your truck still open? I'm sure Leah will want to bring some things from her house."

That's how I inadvertently stole Bella Swan's life. Well, not the whole thing, just the part of living with Charlie and going to bed with a vampire every night. The major difference? I totally intended to have lots and lots of sex with my vampire. Lots.


	13. Chapter 13 The Wedding

***Many thanks to ashtwi for beta reading. Enjoy and review.

Disclaimer: As always these characters do not belong to me but are creations of Stephenie Meyer

The wedding I had dreaded with all that was in my soul, like about a month ago, was finally upon me. Evidently a month is forever in my land of bizarre. One month ago, okay more like six weeks ago, but you have to admit it was a fast turnaround, I defined the love of my life as the big headed bastard standing at the altar radiating hostility at the gorgeous devil standing beside him.

I kinda wanted to blow Sam's attitude off as simple jealousy, after all a groom should want to be the most handsome man at the wedding, I mean if dudes actually cared about stuff like that. Instead Sam was definitely outshone by my Nate who cleaned up well. During a typical 'take me to my happy place' moment when the kids' screeches on the playground got to be too much, leather Nate - you know, leather pants, long hair swinging and barefeet- stalked from my fantasies to take me to our tree. I still loved that tree.

Until today, leather Nate was as good as it got, but from now on tuxedo Nate was going to rescue me James Bond style... and still take me to our tree. Nate and I lived together but it was increda-weird to have sex with Charlie in the house, or when Charlie and my mom were in the house or worse contemplate having sex of any kind when Charlie and Mom were thinking about being intimate. Believe me, in that situation fine tuned senses backfire like a motherfucker. There are so many things I could have lived the rest of my life not knowing. I don't think when I'm Nate's age I'm gonna look back on this time and smile and say, "You remember when Mom and Charlie used to go at it like awkward old rabbits? You remember how she smelled when she was in the mood for some good old Charlie loving? Remember how the moustache always made her giggle? I didn't even know my mama could giggle like that."

However I could see Nate answering,"Charlie loved nothing better than your Mother's breasts. Remember the way he used to caress her in the kitchen. I never knew one could fondle loudly, yet Charlie managed to do so." My Nate would go there with me for sure.

We still went to Esme's to train and hang out, it was more fun since the visits were voluntary but there is no polite way to phrase, 'Um, if that golden bedroom is available do you mind if we fuck for a bit. Promise we'll be quiet.' So yeah the tree was still our spot, that and our Oregon tree. Who knows maybe one day we might have trees in every state simply because horny old people are gross.

Today Nate's hair was smoothed and tied, the infamous waves cascading down the back of the elegant black jacket. His profile was... I don't think there was word in my English or Quileute vocab to do it justice. Hmm. _Lickable_... that was it. His profile looked so good I wanted to taste it. Now that would make people stand up and pay attention.

At the very least it would give them something new to talk about. Oh my god! Could they get over it already? Yes, I used to love Sam and he used to love me; it was old news. I used to fucking love Barney in all his huge, purple singing dinosaur glory but I grew up and moved on. When any of the kids in my class needed comfort in a heartbeat I would break out a verse of "I love you, you love me" but I didn't need to see Barney to sit still and behave. I moved on. Both of those big headed bastards still had a place in my heart but never in my bed again. I mean Barney might, I still had a weak spot for him but Sam? Never.

Everybody in La Push was comfortable with the new status quo; Leah was getting some. They had seen me gradually getting over myself but more importantly they had seen me with Nate. We couldn't be doubted, or rather his sexiness couldn't be doubted. It was fucking epic. Not my words, it's that super sensitive hearing coming in to play. Just know this; old women don't forget what they want to do to a fine young man. It has something to do with denture removal and chicken bones. I can't go there with the rest but like I said, fine tuned senses backfire like a muthafucker. Ugh.

Now with everybody in Makah, where my mine and Emily's family lived, it was a different story. You would think Emily-Sam-Leah had just happened. On the bride's side there were hushed whispers a plenty.

"Look at her prancing down the aisle, like this is her wedding. I can't believe Emily forgave her after the hell she put her through. Umph, I tell you what, if she steps one foot out of line I'm gonna tell her about herself." One of Emily's Makah's girlfriends was ticked off that I was even there... and ticked she wasn't in the wedding party. Jealous much? She should be. I wanted to show her the red bottoms on my designer shoes to see if she could get greener.

"I saw him coming out of the woods, dick just swinging, carrying Emily. I felt so bad for Leah." One of my cousins was telling her date, I honestly wanted to stop and ask if she felt a little bad for Emily since she was the one bleeding and gashed open. However logic should never impede a good story and besides I was busy taking my stroll down the aisle following in Amelia's wake. It wasn't a good time to stop and rip her a new one.

There were other conversations centered around the past being furtively whispered on the Makah side, and to be honest I started most of that crap. I was young and dumb, nah to be honest I was young but I sure as shit wasn't dumb. All the trouble I caused had been on purpose. I had it in for Emily with a passion. I almost insisted everyone had to be for me or against me. It wasn't until Claire's 3rd birthday party that Emily and I were in the same room in Makah. It was ugly; I was ugly, they supported me and I turned on them. I got back together with Emily which was a slap in the face for Team Leah and vindication for Team Emily. I wasn't exactly welcome by either. Oh well, they could hate me now but eventually they would get over it, something juicier would come along.

The other side, the grooms side, had a whole different gossip goldmine and wasn't whether or not the guys were in Armani. The significance of the groom's choice in best man was the hot topic.

"I'm telling you, look at his hair. That's Josh Uley, all day everyday," One male gossip monger was getting started. I don't think for a minute that they came because of a desire to see a union of two people into one, so much as they had come to be sure that if anything newsworthy happened they would be first with the story.

"Fool, Josh ain't the only man with wavy hair," Logic argued back.

"Well it's not exactly a dominant trait on the res and Delores said it was just like Josh's, and you know she knows hair." I bet Delores rued the day she stuck her pudgy fingers in Nate's hair and asked if it was curly when short like her ex-husband's. Everything you say can and will be used against you... everything.

"Whatever, its just hair," Logic tried again with simple reason.

"Man, he's in the wedding party. He's Sam's best man, no less."

"Leah and Emily are thick as thieves again. You know how girls are? They match up things. Leah's the maid of honor so her beau has got to be the best man." That sounded right even to me and I knew the story.

"He might be Leah's boyfriend. I've seen them all hugged up, but tell me this: have you ever seen that young man without Sam? They're practically joined at the hip. Look at them now. Guys don't stand that close together unless they're blood. He comes looking for his dad and now he's Sam's best man. Come on, that's not coincidence." The official story that Nate's father may have been one of the indigenous people of this area had leaked out via Charlie, directly to Billy and put on blast all over the res. We Quileutes weren't by far the only tribe in the state of Washington and I'm fairly certain Josh wasn't the only man known to step out on his wife but as I said before, logic has no place in a good story.

"You may have a point there. Come to think of it, I've never seen him without Sam." Logic was finally swayed by circumstantial evidence with as much substance as cotton candy.

I didn't turn my head to see who the speculators were but I could hear them loud and clear the same way I'm sure every wolf and half vamp in the room could.

Sam's wasn't happy with his best man, but it was his own fault. I asked Sam if I could bring Nate to the wedding. It seemed proper protocol to ask him because you know he's just chief of whole tribe. He said "No" almost before I finished talking which wasn't a total a surprise.

I dismissed him, he wasn't the boss, just a figurehead, "I was trying to be polite."

I shrugged and then asked Emily who said, "Of course."

Sam whined a little, "Aw come on Emily, I don't want to have to babysit him the whole time I'm at _my_ wedding."

"_My_ wedding will be in Makah, so your self-made tribal rule doesn't apply. You don't have to escort him. It's my wedding, my rules. Leah can bring Nate."

Sam started to protest again but Emily got him with the look. Her look was this kind open-hearted thing that threatened to be crushed if you said no. I have never seen it fail her once with Sam. It rarely failed with me which is how I ended up agreeing to be the maid of honor in the first place. Sam was giving in so fast it was funny but he tried one last time, "But Emiiileeee..." Seeing Sam wheedle was strange yet delightful. I paid rapt attention so the guys could enjoy the playback.

Emily, ever one for thoroughness, pulled out the guilt sledgehammer, "It's the least we could do for her Sam. She shouldn't have to come our wedding alone."

Total capitulation. With a slight slump of the shoulders Sam sighed, "Oh all right." After he caved he quickly saw his advantage. "Man, I'll have to keep up with him the whole time." Feigned deep thought was followed by, "There's no other way, he's going to have to stand in as my best man. Shucks, I guess Paul and Jared will have to understand. I mean they can help me out right? The guys will be disappointed but it is what it is." False graciousness followed, "That's fine Leah, I'll do this for you. You can bring Nate to the wedding. Can Alice get him a suit in time?"

Did Sam think he was fooling anybody with that concession speech? He didn't want to choose between Jared and Paul for best man since Embry turned him down flat. Nope, he'd rather have Nate do it than hurt either guys' feelings. It was sweet yet moronic.

Emily stood in her kitchen wiping her hands while we smirked together. "I'm sure Alice can manage a suit." Even Sam and Emily were beginning to believe clothes came from Alice. That had been the way of this wedding. Emily communicated her vision to Alice who made it so. There was no shopping, only fittings, and absolutely no opinions allowed. I thought there would be some dissent, coming from me mostly, but actually it was huge relief. We had Operation Run Tell That, Nate's new job, and adjusting to living with Charlie to deal with, the last thing we needed to worry about was, well, anything else.

"Thanks, Sam," I injected as little sarcasm as possible, then much lower reminded him all pettiness aside, "I truly need him there."

Sam had Nate as a best man. The groom agenda of only showing up and saying the right words when told to was completely destroyed. Sam and his groomsmen had their hands full because Sam couldn't say no to Emily. The guys say it's an imprint thing but I have an imprint and I tell him no all the time, otherwise I can assure you he would have killed a person or two by now at this wedding or at the rehearsal party last night.

Today people whispered furtively, last night they whispered drunkenly, which is like a stage whisper, but louder. The words 'bitch' (that would be me) and the word 'whore' (that would be Emily) got tossed around liberally and that's when they were being nice. When they were being nasty or creative they speculated if Sam was doing both of us at the same time or how Emily was prettier than Leah until her face got all fucked up. I was holding it together. Mom explicitly asked me to hold my tongue and keep my hands to myself. Sam was fuming and had given up speaking with the effort of keeping it together. I saw the occasional tremble but he had enough bad press in Makah, plus he had the responsibility of representing our entire tribe. I could see the anger boiling beneath the surface on all of us Quileutes but we were maintaining, being mature.

It was the oldest member of our party who lost his shit. Different people stood to speak, mouthing platitudes and well wishes that sounded right. It was tedious but the evening was coming to a close so people were compelled to draw it out with pomp and circumstance. Uncle George, Emily's father, said a few words to commend himself for throwing this highly disruptive party in the same community center the wedding reception would be in the following day. He had to throw some money around to upstage the actual event since it was promising to be an elegant affair that he had nothing to do with. It also soothed his conscious for treating Emily like shit when she shirked college to shack up with Sam. His insurance would have paid for some reconstructive surgery until he dropped her from the policy.

Uncle George spoke, generally patted himself on the back, and since he noted the respect the tribe had for Sam he took a moment to appreciate that Sam would make a good husband for his youngest daughter.

Delores, Sam's mother, said a bit about how lucky Sam was to have found such a nice sweet girl like Emily who genuinely loved him. She was fond of Emily but she also wanted everyone to know, without exactly saying my name, that Emily was better than me. She also took some time to let everybody know in her own words how great her son was. How he single-handedly reduced the drop out rate of the tribal school. She left out the part that in La Push there was a notion among the youth that you attended school or you might get beat down by a gang. It was highly motivational. "Come to school or else." Sam never said what the or else was, but there was something about half-naked muscle bound men showing up at 7:30 a.m. escorting truant kids to school that just alluded to violence.

One of my Mom's four sisters said a few words about the bright future of these young people, subtly reminding people to move on. There were others, self-important people who had to make sure their voices were heard because an event couldn't truly be important unless they had some say in it.

I wasn't catching one word in twenty; tuning out skills coming in to play. When Nate stood up I felt the appropriate amount of dread although as best man it seemed natural that he would speak. Even I thought he would mash up and recycle the crap that had already been said. No, really, I honestly thought he would. I told him he might be expected to say a few words. I thought we were of one mind, that he would keep it brief and ultimately meaningless.

Alas, I was too far away. Emily and I were returning to our table, still half way across the room. Moments ago I was busy soothing Emily after she overheard someone saying Sam would always love me, he was just stuck with Emily because of those hideous scars. It burned to hear my own words come back at me.

Nahuel had the crowd's attention easily. One, because vampire's are gorgeous, its a rule. Two, angry vampires are sexy, at least mine is. Three, the insidious melody in his voice was an irresistible predatory tool. When he said "Good evening" in his lilting accent, I could smell the panties wetting around me. Literally, I could smell my grandmother's neighbor Miss Bertie warming to the idea of getting it on with my Nate. It is as gross as it sounds. More so really.

"For those of you who do not know me I am Nahuel, the best man. More importantly I am Leah's lover."

He continued just to be sure even Gran knew what kind of girl I was, " She does not spend her nights with me pining for him." He gestured towards Sam in an offhand dismissive manner.

It seemed every woman in the room turned to look at me. Invariably some threw me looks, envious, spiteful and even worse bewildered looks like 'how the hell did she pull him?' I didn't give them the usual _'Ha Don'tcha wish' _ smirk. My concentration was on getting through the crowd quick like.

"This lovely lady," he gestured to Emily," is the bride to be, you may call her Emily. The pretty girl supporting her is my very own Leah." He said my name with a caress that made my spine tingle... with fear. Tonight I wasn't Beautiful, I was Leah, his very own Leah. Heads rolled for his very own Leah, literally rolled across the forest floor.

I smiled briefly to the room with my arm still firm around Emily as I hustled her through the crowd to our table. The dreamy looks even on the face of some of the men was an indication of the danger. Nate was pissed. The more deadly he was the sexier he was. It's a vampire thing. It didn't work on me and when we were only around our own unnatural kind it wasn't noticeable since the predatory sexy didn't work on other vampires, or werewolves, and imprinted chicks were too besotted. Live and learn.

He paused for dramatic effect, drama being a prime directive of vampire kind. "Do not call them outside their names again. I will not tolerate it. Emily and Leah, not hateful bitch, nor immoral slut..." I heard a gasp or two, or six.

Uncle George, Emily's dad chortled as if something was funny, interrupting to smooth things over, "We get the picture... I had you pegged for a lover not a fighter." He tried to joke, throwing a few fake punches at a clearly unamused Nate. I groaned. I was not in the mood to save Uncle George's life tonight.

Nate raised one eyebrow, a mannerism he picked up from me but now wasn't the time to gush. His raised brow meant 'Are you stupid?' He clarified, "You are mistaken, I am a killer not a fighter. There is a distinction." His gaze roamed the crowd, visually calling people out. Women and a few men boldly met his gaze. My people are not punks but they were ignorant of the threat level. A few guys muttered the basic, "Who the hell does he think he is?" Others knowing full well what they said pretended to look around to see who it might have been saying such awful things. The gossipers could try to ignore Nate but when a vampire lays his gaze on you, you know it. That cold sensation on the back of your neck is certain death saying, "Hello" with a promise of goodbye.

Emily and I finally arrived at the head table. Emily ran to Sam, tugging his arm exclaiming, "Tell them he doesn't mean it Sam!"

"But he does. You know he means everything he says." He could have been more help but clearly he was enjoying this turn of events. A broad grin cracked his face and Jared and Paul had the nerve to fist pound with satisfaction. They truly didn't understand the danger level. Nate's calm delivery had them fooled.

In double time I took the mic and ran an arm around Nate's waist pinning him to my side. He was tense. "We invite you all to have a good time and enjoy the wedding festivities. Just don't be rude to Emily, this is her special day we are celebrating." I smiled with false cheerfulness. I used every ounce of my strength to man-handled Nate outside and make it look like snuggling. It wasn't. There was no affection just brute force.

See, I had experience in telling my imprint "No."

"No, you can't kill any of the guests to set an example."

"No, I don't have a least favorite relative that wouldn't be missed."

"No, Nate, even if you don't drink the blood, it would still be wrong."

It wasn't the tempting smell of people that made Nate's transition into society difficult. It was the nature of people. People and the things they say. Horrid chatter that Nate wasn't used to coping with. He could easily withstand ugly words about himself; strange, dumb, rude, or so sexy I want to rip my panties off and do him on the counter. Okay, the last one wasn't so bad unless you knew which waitress at the diner said it, then it became clear. Of that last one Nate said, "As though taking her panties off would induce me to do anything other than put them back on her, perhaps with a hammer and nails."

That stuff aimed at him didn't make him flinch. Words said about me and my nasty attitudes, Emily and her scars, my mom and Charlie and how neither had any respect for my Daddy or his memory, the Cullens being stuck up, or pretty much anybody in our circle but Sam made him angry. For the first time in his long life he couldn't handle his anger by having a quick meal at the transgressors expense.

Today Nate was an armful. The groom and his groomsmen stood there arms locked at the elbow with each other. It looked like a show of solidarity but it was a restraint tool. Nate was angry and you simply couldn't make the announcement, "The best man is a freaking vampire so don't piss him off. He will cheerfully kill you. Mind you, he won't drink your blood because that would be wrong but you'd still be dead."

We didn't anticipate his level of ire correctly. Frankly none of us had experience in taming a vampire but we had all suffered from hearing far too much. Half the reason young wolves are angry is because of something they heard, about themselves or worse, their mothers. Example, Paul's mom is an uber bitch therefore Paul was the angriest wolf. He imprinted on a girl ballsy enough to confirm that it was true his mom is actually a very unpleasant person and he had to believe her therefore he was no longer mad at the world. We had, over time learned to deal with the negativity but Nate was still learning to cope. Nevertheless, I still needed him here with me.

When I took my place beside Emily's sister Amelia, I was swamped in the distinct odor of impending baby. Billy had a theory, it was an ominous one. Quileute magic was preparing. From the smell of things it was preparing for a war. All of my fellow bridesmaids were expecting. Kim, Rachel and Amelia too. I had a theory too, when a woman is sure she's going to lose the love of her life in a few days time she might try to preserve evidence of his life and love by holding onto him in the only way possible. But that's me thinking it might not be supernatural. Foolish right? Rachel was pretty sure she and Kim were having wolves and that Mom and Amelia were carrying imprints.

We had talked extensively about it last night. Emily started it. The moment we got to her parents house to spend the night she hustled me into her old room to tell me her secret. "Leah, don't tell anybody, but I think I might be pregnant." She was so happy and excited and I was simply pleased that I could smile and hug her without flinching. However I couldn't pull it off with a poker face. Em was so cute, letting me in on her secret.

"What's with the smug grin?" Emily looked at me in suspicion.

I tried diversion, "Pregnant just like your mom when she got married, right? But nowhere near as far along."

She narrowed her eyes making me nervous. She could read me like a book. She went on, "I'm not gonna tell Sam until we get to Hawaii. You know he would insist on me getting checked out by a doctor before we made the trip. What is it?"

She caught me grinning again. Tell Sam? Get checked out by a doctor? This was too cute. She got checked out like all the time and she didn't even notice. Sam had switched her multivitamin with a prenatal one. Carlisle even had Sam telling Em he had a taste for liver and onions once a week to boost her iron. Alice and Rose recorded her vitals every time she came by to talk wedding and get fitted into her dress. Rosalie wanted to get an ultrasound done but couldn't convince Carlisle who opined it wasn't in any way necessary at this stage. He had been delivering babies before ultrasound and he would still be delivering them after the next fad. Yeah, he had a bit of an ego about his medical expertise. He said Emily was fine and had given the okay for the trip directly to Sam, who just as Emily predicted, insisted she get checked out first.

"What's up Leah?" She twisted her lips then said, "You knew already didn't you?"

I didn't say anything while Emily talked it out. "If you knew, then your whole pack knew which means the Cullens knew too. They aren't big on secrets. You would think supernatural beings would be better about secrets." She speculated, "It's like they have one big secret and that's the only one they can be bothered to keep." She was silent for a moment..."Lee, tell me something, am I the last one to find out?"

"Pretty much. Don't be mad, though. Sam was gonna tell you on your honeymoon as a big surprise and no one wanted you stressed out before the wedding." I tried to explain the rationale behind it.

"Sam was going to surprise **me** with **my** pregnancy? That's sorta sweet and bizarre." And just like that Emily was cool with being lied to.

When Rachel and Amelia joined us we talked on into the night. Rachel had gotten pregnant on purpose, as did Amelia for different reasons. Amelia's husband was old so she was popping them out while he could still enjoy them. The moment Rachel found out about the Volturi invasion she worked at getting pregnant. "I felt charged with an important mission for my people, doing my part and what not, but all I did was flush some pills down the toilet and lay on my back. It's not really hard to get pregnant..." She giggled then clapped her hand over her mouth. "Oh God, I'm so sorry Leah." There are no secrets.

"Girls it's okay. I went a little off the rails. I had been down so long I forgot to how to be any other way. I'm taking Rose's advice and I'm not going to let tomorrow's worries ruin today. Right now I get to enjoy your pregnancies without any of the weight gain and morning sickness." Somehow I successfully downplayed my incident, not wanting to turn their joy into sadness on my behalf. They bought it and to an extent so did I after I reached out to feel Nate. Since my 'incident' it was easier for me to find our connection and draw on it, pulling him into me like an embrace, a caress to my soul.

Today, I didn't get misty eyed or act the fool because I was left out. I had an important chore ahead of me. I looked into Nate's eyes and he stared right back into mine. Vows were exchanged. I breathed deeply, slowly, in-out. Snipes were made, incidental nothings. I let them roll off my back, staying focused and calm still looking into Nate's eyes. I passed Sam's ring to Emily. Nate passed Emily's ring to Sam. I was the picture of serenity and calm. Nate kept his eyes on mine. The words 'you may kiss the bride' were pronounced and as Sam raised Emily's veil, some son of a bitch said, "Look it's the Bride of Frankenstein." It took everything, absolutely every fucking thing in me to stay calm, to keep Nate calm. Every instinct wanted to unleash my fury. If I slipped just the tiniest bit, so much as rolled an eye or lifted my eyebrow, my fury would be free to do as he pleased.

Last night when we took a breather after his speech I tried to be rational, "Nate you can't kill everybody with an unkind word to say. That would take forever."

"It would only take a minute, a minute and a half if they scatter." He breathing was jagged from the effort of controlling his anger. "Emily is such a sweet girl, how can they say such awful untrue things? I don't understand." I didn't point out that I was sweet too. Now wasn't the time to address my shortcomings in my imprint's eyes.

I gathered him into my arms hugging him and holding him all at once. "They say it because it entertains them. They say it because they don't know or care what truth is. They don't really mean any harm. Most of them wouldn't say half of it if they thought they were being overheard. Let it go. It's human nature. Relax darling." Eventually he relaxed, clinging to me. The majority of the people had know Emily and I our whole lives and were happy to see us together again but it only took the few with a running commentary full of venom to cast a pall on the room for those of us with highly tuned senses. Nate had been around gossipping people before but for the first time he had people to care about. Huilen didn't mix with people except for feeding time so those who spoke of her typically said, "Ahhhhhhhhhh! Argh...vampire" and maybe some gurgling sounds.

As the happy couple was presented as Mr. and Mrs. Samuel Joshua Uley, Jared and Paul smoothly locked arms with Nate. My brothers were awesome.

Although as they turned I heard Jared say, "I saw the dude who said it. When Leah's not looking will you tag him in the mouth? Superfast like, so we don't get in trouble."

"I will not leave a mark and no one will see me." I heard Nate agree readily, his voice low.

I saw the briefest scowl cross the groom's face and his words floated on the wind, "Just make sure it hurts."

"Sshh. She might hear you." Paul was the voice of caution. I decided to turn a blind eye this one time. My brothers were still awesome even if a tad irresponsible.

**Part 2**

I sat on the edge of the bed and slipped my shoes off. My feet weren't too happy with the prolonged tottering about on heels but I had looked great. Nate sat on the other end of the bed. He held out his hands, inviting my feet with a, "Give me." I plopped my feet in his lap without delay.

"I don't understand why you torture your feet so." His warm hands caressed the soles of my feet, his fingers slipping between my toes working the tension out.

"You gotta admit my legs looked awesome." I flexed my calf muscles for emphasis.

"Your legs look awesome when you are barefoot and splattered in mud. Those torturous stilts don't change anything." He raised my foot and kissed each toe.

"Keep it up, flattery will get you everywhere," I chuckled, my voice already getting husky with intent.

Nate's hands stopped as he caught my eye, "Will it get me back to the rain forest and away from this insanity?"

"Technically you are in the rainforest. Besides if you left now, your father would be so disappointed." I laughed again this time with mirth.

Nate groaned, getting to his feet to remove his clothes in an agitated state. "That idiot. I do not find it amusing Beautiful. No, not at all."

Alice had worked miracles to pull off the wedding in two weeks. Finding vendors was a challenge and she finally chose, i.e threw a bunch of money at and pleaded, a catering company out of Vancouver to take on this job. What are the chances she would find an outfit that happened to have one Josh Uley on payroll as event staff? Slim to none. Sam wasn't pleased to see his own father circulating with a drink tray. Josh may be many things but unpleasant wasn't one of them. His presence would have been negligible if it wasn't for the rumor about Nate.

Seeking to put it to rest, Delores, the high priestess of gossip, waylaid Josh. She didn't like too many rumors not of her own creation floating about. She found this rumor particularly insulting due the stated closeness in the age of her son and Joshua's alleged bastard.

I didn't notice their exchange until Delores flat out asked Joshua, "There's been a lot talk going 'round and I want to know if that's your son?"  
I turned to see if she was pointing out Nate or if was it Embry. He was the only other member of my pack at the wedding. Operation Run, Tell That required a wolf presence. The Cullens would be gone soon and we had to make vampires fear us, so any confrontation required the presence of a furry La Push native. Embry got a pass since he had to drive his mother up for the wedding. He was currently hanging out with the bridal party talking to Sam and Nate.

"No, I remember his mother. Ellen, wasn't it? Quiet little thing that moved into her grandma's house on the res. She never would give me the time of day, threatened to tell you if I didn't stop pestering her. Kid looks just like her."

"No, not that one. And she did tell me." Delores was irritated but at least Embry was vindicated.

He nudged Sam to let him know, "Your daddy would have made one hell of a wolf because he's one hundred percent dog." Embry laughed at Sam's sheepish expression. Joshua didn't exactly fill his son with pride. Josh wasn't a my dad can beat your dad sort, he was more of I bet my Dad you could do your mom, in fact he probably already did.

"See that boy next to Harry Clearwater's daughter?" Delores attempted to get Josh on the right track.

"His little girl grew up real nice. Wonder how old she is?" The leer in Josh's voice made me roll my eyes up slightly. "Where is old Harry anyway?"

I steeled myself while Delores passed on the sad news. "He died last year, bad heart, you know?"

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Harry was a good man. Poor Sue. She must be broken up." He paused then asked, "Is she around here anywhere?"

"Josh focus," Delores snapped. "Leah's too young for you and Sue would cut your liver out. She doesn't want your kind of comfort."

"I was only going to offer my condolences." Josh sounded wounded.

"Uh uh...tell me another one." Delores sucked her teeth and pushed on," See that boy next to Leah Clearwater. I've been trying to tell people he couldn't possibly be your son."

Joshua craned his neck in exaggerated speculation, "That's a good looking kid. He has my hair, too. How old is he?" You could see the child support wheels spinning in Josh's irresponsible head.

"Nineteen, you would have been living at home with me." Delores stated pointedly.  
Josh sighed with audible relief and disregarded Delores' strong hint. "His mom must have been a real looker. Sorta built like me too." It was an unfortunate truth. Josh was shaped like Nate: lean muscled, medium frame and about the same height. Sam got his build from his mom; broad shouldered, big-boned and thickly muscled and dare I say, a slight facial resemblance to a horse.

"Yeah, but do you know his mother?" Delores pressed. She was playing her trump card, after all, Nate's mother, Pire lived and died a century before Josh took his first breath. There was an actual audible silence from her audience. She was going to put this one to rest.

"I've known lots of women, if you know what I mean." Josh chuckled as though his joke was clever. I'm sure even 3 year old Claire knew what he meant.

"Joshua!... Do you know that boy's mother?" Delores was getting impatient.

"How the hell should I know? I've never laid eyes on that kid. He does look a lot like me. Damn, where's Maury Povich when you need him?" Josh spared a fake search for a film crew. " His mama must have been a real beauty. I've had a lot of those." Josh stated again proudly as his vanity won out. He wouldn't disavow Nate. "Sorry Delores, good looking kid like that and I was working in Seattle a lot in those days I just can't say for sure he's not mine."

Delores sucked her teeth yet again, enraged knowing she couldn't tell the truth, that the 'boy' was more than three times his age. "It's a blessing I'm still alive and not in the grave from some nasty woman's disease."

"Now Delores, don't be like that. They got medicines for most everything except the AIDS and you only get that from lying with another man. You know I'm not into that," Josh contrived to sound hurt.

Nate had leaned forward to say to Sam, "Your father is an ignorant whore."

"Our father, don't you mean." Sam returned with disgust.

Nahuel was genuinely perplexed, "Surely, people will not believe he is my father based on his mentally challenged assessment?"

Sam nodded and I confirmed, "Yeah they will."

"That is ridiculous." Nate scoffed giving Joshua a look of pure disgust.

"I've been trying to tell you babe, that is the nature of gossip." Oddly enough that helped Nate more than anything else to ignore the backbiting chatter. He assigned it all to the category of insane babble like the very idea he might be Joshua's offspring.

"Where am I supposed to put my clothing? Nate stared at the packed closet. The state of the closet was not my fault. Seriously, when I was in high school I used to stand in front of my closet wondering what to wear, shuffling things about like I didn't know what was in there. Now that I'm out of school I still do it, the only difference is I honestly don't know what might be in there. It was like... someone was breaking into the house but instead of stealing, they left stuff like clothes with just the perfect accessories to match. That's not possible right?

"Drape the suit on the back of the chair. It needs to go to the cleaners anyway." There was something so mundane about this moment. Nate stripped down to an undershirt, boxers and black socks. Undressed he had on more clothes than he was used to wearing.  
"So did you have fun today? I held my hand out to him to rejoin me on the bed. I was mentally and physically exhausted from the wedding. Most nights I run a solid six to eight hours, sleep maybe two hours, work all day and repeat yet this wedding had kicked my ass.

"I had a great time. I did not expect such enjoyment. Leah, I cannot begin to tell you how sexy you are when you dance." The bed swayed slightly as he joined me, gathering me into his arms.

"I think you showed me better than you could ever tell me." I giggled as though I was a little embarrassed but I wasn't really. I should have been ashamed for having made a spectacle of myself at Emily's wedding but screw it. Emily said have fun and I did, oodles and oodles of fun.

Nate kicked it off. As best man he had to give a toast and after his rehearsal speech, Nate's toast was a more highly anticipated event than the throwing of the bouquet. I heard someone say, "Look, I'm running outside for a quick smoke, if it looks like they are going to start the toasting, text me will ya? I wanna see what Sam's brother's gonna say today." Heck, Embry had promised to record it on his phone for Emmett.

When Nate's turn came up people literally stopped chewing. Having learned my lesson I was by his side when he took over the microphone. "Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. My congratulations to Sam and Emily. I understand that my duties as best man are more than just defending the honor of the bride and the maid of honor." He squeezed my waist pulling me even closer to him. Nate, it turns out is a toucher and does not shy away from public displays of affection... I was finding out at the same time as the rest of my entire extended family. I wondered if they noticed his hand slipping from my waist to my hip?

There were a few snickers before he continued,"It seems I am to also say something to either embarrass the groom or tell everybody just how much he loves his bride. The former I covered last night, so I shall concentrate on the latter with the help of Beautiful. Sam please take your bride to the dance floor."

Sam and Emily complied, taking to the dance floor in complete confidence. After last night's speech I made sure that Nate had a completely scripted piece for today. Emmett could laugh at something else and everybody else waiting to chuckle at my boo could kiss my ass.

The band struck up and on cue, Nate's clear baritone voice sang out,

_My love,_

_There's only you in my life_

_The only thing that's bright_

Of the few things I brought from home to Charlie's was Daddy's music. It was sorta our thing. We couldn't share sports because I had no interest. We couldn't share fishing refer to the latter, multiply by 10 and add five for good measure. Music though, was different. Daddy loved blues best but he loved all music. We listened to it together; in the house, in the car on the long drives to Makah, in the late evenings when my heart was sore and broken and Daddy tried to soothe me with his beloved blues. It wasn't a good plan, listening to some poor sap, sadder than me but it did matter that my Daddy loved me enough to not pretend he couldn't hear me crying, to come sit with me instead, play a few records and share a beer or two. Through Daddy's music I introduced Nate to my father, sharing melodies and memories. It was only natural we would choose something of Daddy to inject into the ceremony.

Nate and I had sampled some of everything in the collection to pick just the right song. We decided it was "At Last" by Etta James, but due to my boyfriend being insane, we switched it last night to a duet for the safety of the guests. My cousin Gib's good friend Roger, was already sporting a fat lip that came out of nowhere. A wedding couldn't afford but so many unexplained facial injuries and still be considered a success.

I sang out Diana Ross' part of Endless Love thinking of Emily.

_My first love,_

_You're every breath that I take_

_You're every step I make_

My voice wasn't all that great or even good for that matter but you know what, neither was Diana's. Seriously.

I couldn't think of anything more appropriate for Emily. Sam was her first love and her only love. She never had eyes for anyone else. That's what Roger held against her. He tried kickin'it to Emily for years but never got anywhere. Emily dated some but her heart always belonged to Sam.

There was some disappointment that Nate was not currently threatening the lives of the wedding guests but I think most people watched with pleasure as the newlyweds danced and exchanged tender kisses in their own little world swaying in the middle of the floor.

_You'll be the only one_

_'Cause NO one can deny_

_This love I have inside_

_And I'll give it all to you_

Ah, cue the waterworks. Sam's face contorted as he tried to keep the tears from flowing but he couldn't. Yeah it was touching but also funny to see Sam crying at his wedding. He said he wouldn't; real men don't cry. I looked up then to catch Nate's eye. He winked at me and I knew he found it entertaining too. Maybe we weren't nice people, but at least we could be un-nice together.

Nate and I finished the song on equal footing. He kindly did not flex his vocal range, letting me hang with him to the very end. Even toned down though, his voice was a thing of wonder. Sure all vampires can sing but Nate's voice had a warmth that they couldn't match. Vampire singing was usually that operatic crap that honestly hurt my wolfie ears. Nah, I couldn't stand opera before, now I could make it sound legit.

There was enthusiastic applause as Nate bowed deeply taking me down with him, fully accepting his accolades. As he rose, he caught my eye and winked again smiling at little ole me. It hit me, it me hard, like a ton of bricks, or an anvil or a piano or some other ridiculous cartoon thing that flattened a person. I... I loved him. I was in love with him. I was in love with my imprint. It seems like a 'well duh' but I thought imprinting was as high as a person could go with love and commitment. I did love him from the moment I saw him with the eyes of a woman and knew I would give my life for him but to a great degree I felt the same way about Seth or any of my pack. I had desired him, my body was made to make love to his, his venom didn't kill me so that was proof if ever it was needed but I was stunned to find that imprinting, love and desire were actually different from this feeling that was rapidly turning my bones to mush. I loved that man. I lurved him. Heart and soul.

He stepped off the stage and crooked his finger at me, mouthing, "Come dance with me."  
Usually he crooked his finger to piss me off. He had a thing for kissing the wrinkle between my eyes, but today I didn't give him 'tude. Today I had to suppress the urge to fucking sigh and whimper. I stepped into his arms and we glided around the room to whatever the band was playing. The la-la land I was in didn't allow me to note anything other the smell of his neck, the feel of his hands on the small of my back, his lips brushing against my ear. I had accepted forever with him. That was part and parcel of who we were but now my heart rejoiced. Forever, I could spend forever with him. I tightened my hold wanting to climb inside him.

I calmed myself with effort. Okay, that's bullshit, he was calm, ergo I was calm, but I would have been excited if I could have been. His lips brushed my ear again, "Beautiful, just like this I wish to claim you. Before all your family and friends, I wish to make it known that you belong to me. We shall be married."

What's a girl to do with a marriage proposal that wasn't really a proposal? It was an edict and who was I to dispute him? There was nothing to be said but I wanted to hear it, I wanted to hear him say he loved me. I was hoping that maybe through our connection he felt it the moment I did, that the same piano fell from the sky and hit us both. We sang Endless Love. Fucking Endless Love at a wedding no less. The concept of romantic love was not foreign to him. I fished, "Why? Why do you want to marry me?"

He chuckled in my ear and held me tighter as the music changed to a faster pace. We picked up the tempo but I clung steadfast, music wouldn't rob me of this moment.

"It is only natural that we marry, that I stake my claim and extend to you my protection in the human world not just the supernatural. You are mine for eternity."

Stake his claim? Did he want to own me like a piece of land, with the right to bear arms against intruders? It sounded that way to me. It was slightly confusing but I chose not to probe. It was enough for the moment that he wanted me as his wife to defend and protect even if not to love and cherish. He wanted me for his wife. He was in my arms and I was in his. I had been loved by a man who wanted nothing more than for me to just disappear, to cease to exist. That kind of love hurt like fucking hell. Love wasn't everything. Nate wanted me and that's what mattered. I could be patient for the rest.

Soon joy and a good beat were too much to resist. In no time our embrace was lost as we picked up the rhythm of the band. I had never had a dance partner like my Nate. He could more than keep up with me, he read my body, anticipated my movements. He didn't go all dude on me acting like he was too cool to move. We didn't just dance, we performed, as in the crowd backed off in a circle to watch us tango. Nate learned a little something something back home. I couldn't help myself, I reveled in the attention.

We took a breather from the dance floor, not that we needed it but Alice had cautioned me to remember things like appearing tired when it was warranted. After the 'Leah's lover incident' last night I was loathe to introduce him formally to my Gran but respect had to be shown.

"Gran..." She didn't hear me so I tried again louder, "Gran," she craned her head in my direction, "I'd like you to meet my boyfriend Nahuel. Nahuel this is my mother's mother, Gran."

"Nahuel? I thought your name was Nate. Everybody said it was Nate. Are you sure it's Nahuel?" Gran gestured for us to sit down.

"Quite sure, ma'am. It is the name my mother gave me." Nate assured Gran but seriously Nate is a lot easier to say than Nahuel. I called him Nate, everybody referred to him as Nate. People only called him Nahuel to his face and then that was only the people in our circle. He had given up correcting people to Nahuel since they butchered the pronunciation so badly. He just rolled with being called Nate.

"Ah, your mother... the Brazilian beauty pageant contestant that Josh disgraced." Gran leaned forward to whisper to me, "She was here competing in the Miss Teen Universe when Josh knocked her up. Poor thing had to go back home, you know she lost her title behind it." I just cocked my head in wonder. Why did the Cullens even bother giving Nate a backstory when it was obvious that my family was much better at it?

I ignored her comment which didn't bother her in the least because she just went on. "I enjoyed your speech last night. Standing up for my girls. I like that a lot. Got a kick out of it too. Leah, I'm glad to know you're being nice to this one. You know if you had been nice to Sam he wouldn't have gone to Emily to be nice to him." She looked pointedly at Nate and went on, "I tell all my daughters once they reach a certain age, you gotta be nice to keep a man, cause if he doesn't get it from you he'll get it from someone else. Um hmm. I made it a point to be nice to my husband at least once a week, sometimes more if he deserved it. Or if I deserved it." She laughed bawdily and nudged me in my ribs as horror dawned on me, the images of Gran and Poppa... No she couldn't mean that, "But child I can understand why you weren't nice to Sam. He's ain't much to look at is he? "

Nate wrapped his arm around my shoulders and leaned forward conspiratorially to say, "Lee-ah," He savored two those syllables making them linger like sex in the air, "is very nice to me. Very often. I will not stray."

She patted my hand, "Good girl. Keep him happy."

Someone please tell me I wasn't getting brownie points from Gran for... being "nice." If I were a vampire I would take out every memory of Gran saying that word to see just how much I missed out on my entire life. Was 'too nice' a euphemism for whore? I couldn't do that but since Gran was going in that direction and honestly I didn't think she could embarrass me more I had to ask, "If Sam is so unattractive why did you want me to be 'nice' to him?" I had no desire to tell her I had been 'nice' to Sam. I feared she would give me pointers on how to be nicer. 'Reverse cowgirl, you ever try that one Leah? Menfolk like that one.' I could image it too easily.

"Cause he's the marrying kind. He was so nice to you, never an unkind word and lord knows you deserved a few." She leaned to Nate again to say, "Her Daddy spoiled her rotten. It's not her fault so don't you don't you go holding that against her. And he'd look me in my eye when he talked to me. That's a youth planning on being a man. Like I said, the marrying kind."

"Yes Grandma, the marrying kind just like his Dad. I mean Joshua married too." I said dryly watching Josh, currently on the floor bumping and grinding with Delores. She was laughing and obviously putty in his hands.

"No, he ain't the marrying kind. Now Delores' daddy was the marrying kind. She got pregnant and he got 'em married. Big man, huge fists, he didn't need a shot gun to get his point across." Gran chuckled. "Now this one you got here. He's real easy on the eyes. I ain't so sure he's the marrying kind but you shouldn't be worried about that right now. Have some fun with him. Young girl like you should have two, three boyfriends." She shared with me just like Nate wasn't even there.

"No," Nate interrupted Gran, because he was in fact there. "She can only have the one, me. In fact, Leah and I are going to marry." He told Gran of our impending nuptials.

"Are you sure about him baby?" Gran was content to ignore his presence when it suited. "He's awfully pretty, and you're pretty enough. That won't bode well for your daughters. Look at Emily, too pretty for her own good. Boys won't let a pretty girl alone. Now Emily's daughters won't be having that problem." Gran chucked again, this time Nate joined her.

"Laugh now, but it would be even worse for your sons. Look at Ellen's boy. Pretty as a picture. Pretty mama, prettier daddy and the boy is downright beautiful."

There wasn't a moment to feel bad about the kids I wouldn't have, "Ellen's boy? You mean Embry? You know who his father is?" I sat up to attention, leaping all over that. "Is he here? Is he Makah?"

"No, he ain't Makah. He's from La Push." Grandma confirmed what we thought had to be true.

"It's not my Dad is it?" I asked about my own fears.

"No, baby, I said his father was pretty. Your daddy wasn't much to look at either, you got his strong jawline. Good husband material, though." I should have been insulted on behalf of my Dad but I was so close to knowing. "He was a tall handsome boy used to come up to Makah to do his skirt chasing."

"What's his name Gran?" I asked eagerly for me and Embry who was watching and listening with close attention.

Gran cocked her head to one side, "Let me see." She fell silent which would have been pleasant if it had come five minutes ago. "I can remember what he looked like but I can't for the life of me think of his name. His face is right there but what was his name?"

"Is he here?" La Push was definitely in the house today. I looked around, but I don't know what for, Embry looked just like his mama to me.

"No, I don't think so. It might come back to me, it might not. The boy sure looks like him.  
Bah. My memory ain't what it used to be but that's to be expected at my age. Come take me out to the dance floor young man. I might shake it loose." Gran began to levy herself up from the table and Nate rose to help Gran gain her feet.

There was no contingency plan for this. My gran was with my vampire. I met Emily's panicked look. It was one thing for her to go all Alpha on Sam and insist that Nate come to the wedding, it was quite a different one to see Gran in a vampire's arms. Sam followed her gaze and immediately jumped to his feet grabbing Emily's hand only to have her snatch away. "Get Leah!" Emily is a smart girl, what could she do other than scream?

Sam and I took the floor to shadow Nate and Gran. We all understood Gran was guaranteed to say something offensive about practically anybody. She had been filter free as long as I could remember. We had nothing to worry about though, Nate lifted Gran onto his feet and danced her about while she giggled girlishly and said things that made him throw his head back in laughter.

The words slipped from my lips before I knew it. "I love him so much. Look at him." I was watching the line of his neck, his even white teeth, the play of his hair swishing on the jacket and listening to his laughter, full and rich while Gran flayed Charlie's feeble attempts to dance. Seriously she said, "For my daughter's sake I hope he can keep a better rhythm in the bedroom."

"I'm looking at him." I was so wrapped up in Nate I had almost forgotten Sam's presence. The only thing I had said to him was, "Don't step on my feet!"

"I thought it was all one and the same, man. Being in love and being imprinted, I mean at our age and what not." I had to allow for the way my brothers imprinted on kids. "But it's not is it?" I asked our elder statesperson wolfman.

"Nope. Not at all. I needed Emily like I needed air when I kept slipping off to Makah but when she left the hospital, signed herself out to come be closer to me because she was worried about me and my well being, it became something else. I fell in love then. Up until that point the imprint was almost like a burden, like an unwanted obsession. When she came with me that day, put her hand in mine, nothing else mattered. I would do, will do anything to justify her faith in me. Besides, Emily thinks I'm cute even if your grandmother doesn't."

I roared with laughter then and laughed a little coming back in the bedroom from a much needed relaxing shower. I climbed into the bed assuming the snuggle position, my head on Nate's shoulder, my thigh thrown across his body, my arm curled on his chest and his arms around me while he laid on his back. We were in the ready sleep position. I insisted Nate sleep at least an hour every night. It was working out well. My theory was if I could get him into routine sleep he wouldn't need to sleep so soundly every couple weeks. His nightly rest wouldn't be so deep allowing him to stir quickly in case of danger.

"Today was good day." I sighed contentedly but one thing still bothered me. Okay more than one thing but I dealt with the easy stuff. "Last night you said Emily was a sweet girl and wondered how people could say such things. Don't you think I'm a sweet girl too?"

His chest rumbled with laughter beneath me. "Of course not. Fierce, kind and loyal, yes. Sweet, no."

"What!" I sprang to a sitting position. "You don't think I'm sweet but Emily's so sweet you had to defend her honor!" Nate sat up and pulled me back down with him.

"Beautiful, last night you stared down no less than two women and one man. There was also that young man you stared down then feinted towards. He flinched and covered his face. Seth filled me in on that one. It seems you punched him out at a retirement party which is why your Mom asked you to keep your hands to yourself. Does that sound sweet to you?"

"Well no, I suppose not." I relaxed in his arms unable to refute his words. I gave him a quick squeeze, loving his complete lack of bullshit.

"The vile words people spew about you do not distress you. You get that wrinkle between your eyes." He kissed the spot between my eyes. "Sometimes you chuckle." He traced my lips with his finger tips and went on, "What bothers you is when people say ugly things about Emily. She cannot hear them, you can and you wince every time." His hand feathered across my face skimming the corner of my eye. "I hate to see you in pain."

"Last night when you were returning from the kitchen and that girl commented on Emily's scars, I felt your hurt right here." He placed my hand over his heart. "I saw your nostrils flair and your hand trembled when you pulled Emily close to you. Your eyes narrowed into angry slits when you met that girls eyes and your chin lifted to challenge her to say anything else. She put her hands on her hips to challenge you right back. I think your people are brave, too brave and a little foolish."

"Did you think I didn't notice how hard it was for you to hold it together? It hurts you because you love Emily. It hurts me because I care about you more than anything in the world. It made me angry too."

"I would not say you are a sweet girl. You are my fierce, kind and loyal Leah. You are my perfect mate." His lips found mine with one tender kiss. One kiss which lead to many as we made love and fell asleep in each others arms. One tiny mar on the surface of otherwise perfection lingered; the one missing little word, love.


	14. Chapter 14 Where's the Love?

A/N: Still don't own Twilight, Leah or Nahuel...I do own Beautiful and Nate. Yay for me

Many thanks to my beta Ashtwi and my hubby for his incredible patience when I read this to him.

- - Chapter 14 Where's the Love?

"Miss Leah," a small voice called out before whining in a sing song, "Miss Leah! I'm tired, we're tired, can we go in now? Please Miss Leah? Puh-lease?"

Stopping my mad dash across the playground I turned to face my young charges, "You really want to go inside?" The weather was nice, actually sunny, and it was fairly warm. It was the first time this week I had been able to take the kids outside to play.

"Yes," a little head bobbed up and down emphatically. "It's cold and I'm tired." Other little heads nodded to agree and one volunteered, " You run too much." I took in their appearance and checked my watch. They looked droopy and a couple rubbed their eyes, not for emphasis but because they truly were worn out. My watch revealed we had been playing freeze tag for over an hour. It seemed as though only a few minutes had passed.

"Okay, everybody get in line," I called out and they all did as they were told. Inside I began to fume as I took stock of myself. The kids settled down for some circle time with Ms. Crisp, the teacher. Clearly they needed a nap but it was far too early. I slipped out of the room to use the phone.

"Paul, this is Leah. Can you put Nate on?" Paul passed the phone without a bunch of bullshitting around first. He knew what was up.

"Beautiful, what can I do for you?" Nate's honey tone answered but I was not in the mood for that sex god shit.

"What you can do for me is put the coffee cup down. Can you do that? You've had more than enough. I've had more than enough." I hissed at him, trying to keep it down. We weren't supposed to make personal calls during the day.

I made Nate sleep everyday, therefore he needed a coffee fix everyday when he woke up. He and Charlie shared a cup or two every morning at the asscrack of dawn. No big deal, it helped me get out of bed. By the second cup he had our heart pumping and I couldn't sleep any longer. I showered and kissed him goodbye before Anthony and Paul came to get him at seven a.m sharp to head to the diner. At the diner the same waitress poured Nate cups three and/or four. She made lewd comments to the other waitress whom she never let get near her table of 'man meat'. Anyway cups three and four had me ready to charge the world on my way to work. I had been forcibly turned into a morning person. Some mornings it was all I could do to actually drive to work when I'd rather run but it wouldn't do to turn up sweaty.

"My heart is racing and I want to run a freaking marathon. It's 10:30 and the kids need a nap! I wore them out...again, you know like last week when you promised to cut back." I had more energy than any preschooler. I had more energy than the 15 kids in the room combined. My toe was was tapping the floor but it irritated the fuck out of me that my sneakers didn't make a sound. I wanted a staccato rhythm to give my pissed-off-edness an outlet.

"Leah, don't get so excited," Nate tried to calm me.

"Excited?" I hissed into the phone. "I am beyond excited." Nervous agitation crawled all over me. I had no idea why I was more sensitive to the caffeine he imbibed than he was. My metabolism was kick ass fast but Carlisle suggested it was because I didn't directly metabolise it whereas Nate had vampiric metabolism which was crazy slow. What Carlisle couldn't explain was why what went in Nate's stomach affected me physically. Sure the shared heartbeat was part of it, and although the coffee accelerated our heart rate it didn't make him antsy like it made me. I questioned and questioned until he had to go with the standby answer, 'magic.' When he caught my look of derision he pulled that cool look of superiority and said that since we were living together expect more. More? More than what we already had? Nah, I had enough as it was.

I tried stealthily switching him and Charlie to decaf but that doesn't work well on vampires, hell it didn't even work on Charlie. Besides that, it caused me to oversleep.

Nate spoke to me in the patient tones of one dealing with the mentally unstable, "I am sorry, I did not mean to cause you discomfort. Mrs. Spencer offered us coffee when we arrived and I was trying to be polite. You asked me to make more of an effort in my social interactions."

All I could do was sigh. I did insist that he try. In the beginning there was something every day for Paul to pull out during patrol to share and savor over the Sam/Jacob broadcast network. Some of his favorite stories went like this:

"We went to this lady's house over off Church street. She has three little kids, none of them in school yet. She should have called a plumber but my dad's nice and all and costs less. He had me and Nate go under the house. I go under; it's cold and nasty. Nate comes under and the lady's three year old gets set to follow. I mean the kids on his knees in the mud and got so far as to poke his head in the crawl space. In like two seconds Nate's in the kitchen holding the kid saying "Ma'am, we do not babysit, please keep your child out of the way". He didn't do that thing either, you know, where chicks wanna drop to their knees and blow him. It was that scary voice of death shit. It was pretty damn cool. She kept her kids and herself out the way after that.

He was never unkind to children provided you think it's okay to tell a kid to go wipe a snotty nose. I guess that means he was never deliberately unkind to kids but he didn't hesitate to let a parent know they were working, not performing show and tell. Another of Paul's favorites was:

We went to this dude's house to fix the steps and install a ceiling fan. Pretty basic stuff, right? The dude goes on about how he can't take the time off to do it. He's talking about he's some big shot at work and the fucking world revolves around him, then he stays hanging over our backs playing know it all. Dad is trying to show Nate how to check to see whether or not the steps can be repaired or have to be replaced and the whole time dude is contradicting him. Dad says they need to be replaced for safety. Dude starts to run off at the mouth when Leah's boy cuts him off with, "If you know how fix the steps and obviously have nothing better to do, perhaps you should get to it. We have other places to be." Nate starts packing our shit back in the truck. The dude's face turned like fucking magenta or something insanely red and purple at the same time. Dude couldn't even talk, standing there mouth open. Dad was trying not to burst out laughing, I stuffed my fist in my mouth to keep quiet and Nate asked for payment. Dad worked it out but best believe that dude took his ass off to work pronto.

Honestly I think Mr. Rivers had a shit list and whereas he would never allow his son to tarnish the family name by being rude he was setting up jobs and letting Nate do his dirty work even if it meant he had to talk fast to smooth it over. My analogy was it was like a courtroom drama where the witness runs off at the mouth and the judge says 'strike that from the record' but everybody heard it. Anthony made a big show of placating his customers but Nate had already delivered the message; shut up and back off.

Last night's little tale went like this:

"So we went to old lady Cranston's right? She's like a damn leech, the non-vampire kind, all over us from the time the we get there with, "Can I get you a drink? Do you want something to eat? My grandkids, blah blah, blah." Nate tells her, "The charge is by the hour, you may wish to remove yourself so we can work without distraction. Then he walks her to the den and sits her in front of the TV."

Some of Mr. Rivers most consistent customers were the elderly who regularly had maintenance work done just for the occasional company. They offered beverages, sandwiches and wanted to talk extensively about whatever door wasn't closing just right or whatever. Mr. Rivers allowed them this although it slowed progress down so he made it known the charge was hourly. Nate just made it explicitly clear.

So yeah, I had asked him to make more of an effort with honesty in the sense of not regarding it so highly. Most of Anthony's long time customers, use to his patient nature were stunned but let it slide when he explained Nate was new and still being trained, implying that his behaviour would change. So far though every time they got to Mrs. Mallory's where she swanned around in a robe with nothing on underneath Nahuel still saw fit to tell her, payment was expected in cash and she should really put some clothes on. Since she still invariably offered to stuff the money right in his pockets I guess the conversation would be repeated again and again.

Nate's explanation made it sound so reasonable. "Okay then babe, thanks for trying. I'll be in late today, I have a meeting after school from 3:30 to 4:30. I'll be home after that." I was thinking about slipping out during my break at naptime to have nice long run to burn off the excess energy.

"No, Beautiful, Nessie is having a tea party today at 4:00. Have you forgotten?" He was sometimes perplexed by my lack of a perfect memory. You would think I was senile to hear him react.

"It slipped my mind that's all. I may have to make my excuses. I do have to work and all." My lips curled up on the ends and Nate answered me with a chuckle. He understood this easily.

"No, you cannot be late, after all you have to escort Emily and Kim." Nessie's tea party preempted work. Little girls have tea with miniature dishes, imaginary tea and heck, usually imaginary friends. At least I did unless Daddy was so unfortunate as to have to sit with me while I forced him to drink the dirty water I had been playing with all day and eat imaginary cookies. Mom teased me about it but I don't remember.

Nessie's tea involved a hand scripted invitation sent by mail, would be served on antique bone china, and would be attended by every imprinted female she knew in addition to one she very much wanted to meet.

She was excited to meet Claire, Quil's imprint. Jacob and Quil were beside themselves planning this event. It was too damn cute they way they came up with tea. Quil, Jacob and I had patiently explained that Claire would be the roughly the same size as her but different. Being Nessie, she carefully explained to us that she needed to interact with children her size to understand the behavior expected of her by the outside world. Although the Cullens had delayed their move yet again we all knew the day would come when we would have to share our Nessie with the world. None of us looked forward to that but had to concede that Nessie was right. She needed this lesson.

Kara and I had actually been Alpha commanded to attend. See, this is the problem when your Alpha has a munchkin for an imprint. I had to blow off my job to drink tea from antique cups that probably came from some queen's wedding china pattern. If I broke one, Esme would invariably apologize for the cup's alarming rudeness.

"I'll be home after tea or are you coming over to Esme's for dinner?" I hinted broadly. Charlie had a tendency to hang out on the reservation these days after Mom in her campaign to get him moved in, stopped frequenting his house. The first few days Charlie looked to me to cook but seeing as my dinner specialty was also stroganoff, the Hamburger Helper version, he made his way to Mom's.

"No, we will not be dining at Esme's today. We will have dinner with Mrs. Spencer today at 6:00 p.m. sharp."

"What?"

"She kept talking to us. She brought us more coffee and then she stayed in the basement while we were coating the walls. The work takes longer when they stay to watch." This was another reason Nate ran customers away while they worked. He and Paul were limited in speed with a watcher about. "I walked her back up to her kitchen and asked if she had a program to watch on the television and explained that if she was lonely I could come back later for dinner with my soulmate but right now I had to work. She said that would be lovely and to come at six sharp. She went to the grocery store so we are almost finished. I may use this tactic again. Do you want me cancel? I fear she will be disappointed however if I retract." Nate explained and I think, although I couldn't prove it, he got some sort of perverse delight from doing as I asked and then taking it too far.

For Valentine's day we tried the standard romantic dinner at the French restaurant in the Port. Nate had been well prepped, his French is flawless anyway. He held the chair, he offered to order for me, chose the wine, then summoned the waiter with a snap of wrist and fingers calling out loudly, 'Garcon!" I could have died of embarrassment instead I sent a text to Rose to kick Emmett's ass, taking it straight to the source, and told Nate 'garcon' was out of line and demeaning. The next time he needed attendance at the table he summoned a waitress from another table. He stared at her until she hot footed over there twitching, giggling and groveling all at once with the offensive aroma I like to call 'in heat for Nate's meat.' He had a way of making me eat my words. Make more of an effort to be social indeed.

"There's no need to cancel. I'm fine with dinner at Mrs Spencer's. Anything as long as I don't have to cook." The kitchen was not my forte, I could do breakfast just fine but pork chops eluded me. We didn't have the income to eat in restaurants often and there's a limit my pride can stand to showing up at Esme's around dinner time. It never bothered the rest of my pack. Kara, Quil and Embry simply ate dinner twice a day with no qualms, but they were kids. I was a grown woman living away from home, it didn't feel right to bum meals. Unfortunately that meant we had to eat out more often than I would like. Of course by eat out I don't even mean the vulgar implication of oral sex, nope it's worse. I mean running down a deer, mountain lion, rabbit or whatever in the forest. I couldn't cook but I could catch anything on four legs. It's not something I intended to brag about to the ladies at tea today if recipes came up.

"Look I need to get back into the classroom so I'll see you later after tea back at the house. Oh and Nate, could you stop calling me soulmate? It sounds, I don't know..."

"You know my terms, Beautiful. You can be my soulmate or you can be my wife. The sooner you set a date the sooner I stop calling you soulmate."

"Is girlfriend so hard? What about fiancee? That's nice too," I cajoled, already knowing he wouldn't back down.

"After you set a date, I will consider calling you my betrothed. Is that out of date and peculiar enough to make you cringe?" He teased.

"Yeah, that would embarrass me for sure."

"Then I suggest you set the date according to how long you can bear to hear me call you 'my betrothed' with every other breath. Admittedly I like the sound of it." He chuckled then practiced, "This is Leah, my betrothed." What do I do about rubbing off on him? I am pretty sure he didn't start off taunting me the way I taunted pretty much everybody.

"It is your call, Beautiful." Beautiful was a whole other issue. Nate called me that like it was my name, anywhere and everywhere kinda like I called him Nate. Other people started calling me Beautiful too. Could be mockery, could be not, but my vanity decided it was authentic every time, even if it was Quill going, 'Yo Beautiful what'd you burn that smells like ass?" Vanity said, 'you can't cook but you got looks going for you.' Vanity and I were on good terms.

"Okay soulmate it is then. I don't want to get married before Mom or upstage Kim. Besides, I want an outdoor wedding. That's not happening in February or even March. Could you shorten it to mate? I could live with mate."

"I know you can live with 'mate' and that is exactly why I will not use it. Leah," Nate turned serious, "just because they are pregnant their reason for marriage is not superior to ours." Nahuel could also be stubborn. Oh the joy of learning him as my grandma called it.

"I need to get back to the room to get the kids ready for lunch," I sighed, ignoring his comment. I hated this part the most.

"That's fine. I should get back to work. They can never seem to remember how to place the furniture". Nate's impeccable memory was a helpful contractor's tool. "I'll see you later at the house. Bye."

"Bye. See you soon." We hung up. Every phone conversation ended like that, with the absence of an exchange of the perfunctory 'I love you.'

I would settle for a hasty, obligatory 'I love you' right about now. So yeah I thought Mom and Kim had a more legitimate reason to marry, they were loved and they knew it.


	15. Chapter 15 Roomies

A/N: Lei Sun and Hono no tenshi insisted on an update so you have this chapter.

I still don't own the Twilight franchise or I would be reeling from the Rob and Kristen scandal right about now.

Thanks Ashtwi for continuing to read for me.

* * *

**Chapter 15 Roomies**

"What the hell?"

We heard the shout less than a second before hearing the gunshot.

Nate's body jerked with the impact to his shoulder but he was still fast enough to catch the ricocheting bullet before it could possibly harm the man firing the weapon.

Refusing to acknowledge defeat, I swept a foot out and slammed it into Nate's instep causing him to lose his balance while leaping to my feet only to bring my full weight down on him, slamming the air from his lungs. The imprint pain reverberated in my being but I didn't let it stop me; I held him pinned beneath me. He coughed before saying, "Excellent focus, Leah. Good work."

"What the hell is going on here?" Charlie shouted again, gun still drawn.

Both Nate and I looked up at Charlie as I wondered how to explain.

"You shot me," Nate started first, speaking from under my arm. "Charlie, you really shouldn't do that. A bullet's trajectory can be unpredictable on the ricochet, you could have been killed." Nate opened his closed fist to reveal the slug. "Fortunately, I caught it. Please be more careful in the future."

Charlie slowly lowered his gun, "What the hell are you two doing? Why'd you hit her like that?"

I climbed off of Nate, pretty sure Charlie wouldn't shoot him again. "We were sparring Charlie. We do it almost every day. I'm sure it's been mentioned." I heard Charlie approaching and even entering the backyard. I simply didn't expect him to shoot first and ask questions later.

Charlie holstered his weapon, "Surely you don't have to hit her so hard when you're just practicing son?" He raked his hair back from his receding hairline, "I'm sorry about, you know um, shooting you. You okay?" Charlie asked sheepishly.

"Yes, I'm fine and it is the only way." Nate explained simply, then accepted my hand in assistance getting to his feet. He didn't need it but I figured it would help Charlie see there were no hard feelings between us.

"But a backhanded slap? I don't understand?" Charlie questioned before throwing his hands up. "Maybe I don't need to."

He had that stricken look in his eye. I have never known anyone so afraid of information as Charlie. I shrugged, if he didn't want to know, it was fine by me. I occupied myself brushing grass off Nate's back. I couldn't be sure he was going to change for dinner with... I tried to remember which elderly woman Nate had made plans with for the evening. Ms. Cranston was the night before last, she constantly harped that I was going to get fat it I continued eating like that. Mrs. Spencer was before that, she was a former teacher who always wanted a blow by blow account of my day in the classroom so she could give her unsolicited opinion on what Ms. Crisp and I had done wrong. Could it be the Smiths tonight? They were nice enough. It was definitely the Smiths. The lady prattled a lot, she must have 16,000 grand-kids to talk about and the old guy hardly spoke but he seemed pleased enough to have us. I figured he was glad his wife had someone else to talk at even if it was only for a couple hours.

"Our enemies tend to be dramatic rather than efficient in their attacks. It is more likely she will encounter an over the top backhanded slap instead of a direct, more forceful punch. Today we were working on how to roll with a blow." Nate continued on conversationally about his reasons for beating me down in the backyard. "Opponents leave themselves open immediately after landing a hit, it gives them confidence," Nate swung through a fake punch to show how open his body was. "It is the easiest way to create a hole in a defense and if you know how to roll with the blow it is an effective tool to determine their power." Nate wasn't into sheltering Charlie as much as Charlie was into sheltering Charlie.

He switched his tone up, "I must say, I was impressed by how quickly you came to her defense. You are fast on the draw," he chuckled before cutting himself off, wincing, and rubbing his shoulder. This was my cue to actually react like his loving girlfriend and not the nagging one who was more concerned with grass than his health. Unbuttoning his shirt quickly, I pushed it back from his shoulder.

"Does it hurt, babe?" I inspected his flawless skin, searching for the invisible impact spot.

"It stings. Are you going to ice it for me?" He smiled at me charmingly. "You did really well taking advantage of my distraction, not letting it stop you from going for the take down."

"Thanks." I beamed under his praise. Nate wasn't one to give praise lightly, consequently when he said well done, I knew he was impressed. I kissed him lightly on the lips.

With less volume Charlie muttered under his breath as headed into the house, "What the hell?"

Nate and I looked at each other and laughed. "Dude! I didn't even know you were bulletproof."

"Neither did I. This is my first time getting shot." Nate rotated his shoulder a couple times. "I can't say I recommend it but I'm glad to know I can protect you from this threat too." He reached for me, holding me tightly around the waist while touching his forehead to mine. "Does this make me more appealing as a husband?" I didn't get a chance to answer as his lips touched mine, teasing them open before his tongue tangled with mine deepening the kiss.

I could hear Charlie mutter inside the house. "Nothing more romantic than a gunshot." The refrigerator opened and I knew without a doubt a beer came out. "Ah Harry, your daughter's boyfriend takes a bullet well. I mean literally takes it out of the air. Mind you, she can take care of herself but, if I see him hit her like that again, I'll probably shoot him again. Yep." I heard the tab of the beer open before Charlie spoke again. "I wish you were here to see it all buddy," Charlie swallowed and sighed, " 'cept you'd shoot me about Sue and I'm not bulletproof."

February was at an end and Charlie was still in residence. Today was just one of those days that he saw too much. It was hard to shelter Charlie from everything when we lived together. Nate slept one hour a night, two max. I usually slept between two and three. We came home most patrol nights at 4 a.m. That wasn't so bad since we didn't make any noise. I think it disturbed Charlie's 'cop senses' that we came and went undetected though. Nate asked Charlie if he could build a deck, a nice outdoor space that he could feel at home in. Charlie agreed immediately, not even questioning the emphasis on outdoor and at home. Nate and I purchased the materials and Paul came over to help. Charlie ran to the grocery store to get deck-building beer. Deck building beer, like house painting beer, car fixing beer and fishing beer, is a vital lubricant to Saturday projects. Nate and Paul had it finished before Charlie returned from the store. Charlie had to down a couple nerve-settling beers on his new deck to cope. Between vampires, vampire-hybrids and werewolves we were going to turn Charlie into an alcoholic.

We strolled in the house arm in arm. Nate and I rarely ever trained in the backyard, we preferred to train with the packs in the clearing. It was a good neutral spot and Jasper lead the training like a general. The wild concept of training against actual vampires for both packs was Nahuel's idea. He had mentioned it before to only have it dismissed by Jacob in the light of the natural animosity, which a watchful Nate called bullshit on. When he mentioned the idea to Sam after his pack sustained an injury Sam jumped all over it. Besides, everybody saw how kick ass I was after training with Nate, they wanted some of that.

The Cullens agreed to it, wanting to hone their skills, and after seeing Bella develop her natural talent they wondered if they had been lazy. Their defiance of the Volturi also meant they needed to be ever at the ready for an attack, covert or otherwise. So yeah, every day we trained, we had good valid reasons but lets be clear - it was because we all liked to brawl, wolf and vampire alike. It was just as well Jasper was on hand flexing and increasing his natural talents which allowed us mix it up without getting mixed up about who the real enemy was.

Good times, and did I mention that Jasper ran it like a general? The kind that overthrows the democratic government and installs himself as the sole dictator with an iron fist. Jasper was in his element. I didn't know that dude had a personality until he fucking took over. We did as we were told and appreciated his tactical know how, but that shit gets tired quick. When was the last time you saw a general on tv and said I gotta have that man round to dinner, he looks like fun? Some days I took my daily beating in privacy. Nah, the beating days were over unless it was a day like today where getting hit was the point. I was faster, calmer and more battle ready than ever.

Charlie was still in the kitchen when we came in. "Charlie, what are you doing home so early?" I asked, going to the freezer to get ice to put in the washcloth I had grabbed from the laundry area on the way in.

"No reason in particular but I am gonna talk to your Mom again about giving up working at the hospital. She's on her feet too much. You know she went home early today? She wasn't feeling too well and Carlisle insisted she leave." Charlie took a pensive swallow of his beer. Worry was etched around his eyes.

Nate reached out to take the ice pack from me. I gave him an annoyed look before pressing it against his shoulder. "No, I didn't know. Carlisle was probably being over cautious." I kinda felt bad for the Cullens, stuck caring about all these fragile humans. Bella worried about my Mom more than I did. I had the advantage of sleeping and stuff like work. Bella fretted herself into insisting Mom take possession of her loaner car for the sake of safety. Mom resisted at first but that's a sweet ass Mercedes that Mom's twelve year old Taurus couldn't compete with. It did mean I now had a twelve year old Taurus to tool around in. "You know, if there was any reason she shouldn't be working he would have insisted she give it up."

"Yeah, I suppose so," Charlie agreed. "I'm heading over to the reservation. Are you kids staying in tonight?"

"We have dinner plans, with the Smiths, right?" I looked to Nate.

He gave me that look of pity about my poor human memory. "No, that is tomorrow. Today is Thursday." He prompted.

I didn't get it and arched an eyebrow in reply.

"I have no idea how you functioned before me. Your friends down in Olympia invited us to something called Dollar Bud Light Night. They seemed very happy that you would join them."

"Before you I remembered stuff, now I don't have to. I have _someone_ for that." I looked at him meaningfully.

Charlie interrupted, "Hey, **kids**, you're both too young to drink so don't. Since that probably went in one ear and came out the other, listen good to this. No drinking and driving. If I hear an engine and you come in drunk, I won't hesitate to bust your ass. It ain't worth it."

"We won't drink and drive." Nate rushed to assure Charlie. "It is too far to drive and get back in time for patrol so we're going on foot. Its a quick run. We will not be on the roads at all." Did I mention Nate doesn't shelter Charlie?

I put my head on Nate's shoulder, the one I wasn't icing, and shook it just a little bit. First gunshots and now let's reveal that cars slow us down. I lifted my head and looked Nate in the eye before speaking, "We won't be drinking. Honestly Charlie, we can't stand the taste of beer. Nasty stuff." See, that's a proper lie. I liked beer fairly well, it's an acquired taste and my Daddy helped me acquire it. Don't judge him, beer appreciation is a life skill in our family. It was bitter like coffee so Nate could tolerate it. When we hung out with my friends it helped us fit in.

"Thank you Leah." Charlie said with some relief. I told you Charlie was into sheltering Charlie. Then he asked, curiosity piqued, "It's about three hours by car, how long does it take you?"

"When you take the roads out of it the distance is quite short. It will take us forty-five minutes or so to get there. Could be less but Leah hates arriving sweaty." Nate shrugged then went on, "Now if we dance all night, that sweat she does not mind at all. I do not understand how she can have such preferences. Coming back will be fifteen, perhaps twenty minutes."

"It's about making an entrance. I want everything to look just right." Nate looked at me perplexed as though he really couldn't tell the difference between 'funky fresh dressed to impress ready to party' and just plain ole funky. "You are never less than beautiful. I do not understand."

Charlie looked from me to Nate impatiently "Son you never will, but ..." he hesitated before giving in to curiosity again, "how do you pull off not having a vehicle?"

I rolled my eyes at Nate but told Charlie, "One, we don't arrive early, two we meet my buddies at the club or bar or wherever, three we cite the drive home to dip way before they ever want to leave, fourth and most important, we wear the leather and biker gear to imply motorcycle so no one ever asks us for a ride."

"Makes sense, I suppose." Charlie stood from the table pushing his chair under. "You kids have fun. If you wanna join me and your mom for dinner you're welcome to. I'm going to cook to let her rest."

God, Charlie Swan offered to cook to save me from myself. That was sad. I'd once seen him make meatloaf by pulling a frozen packet of beef from the deep freezer, unwrapping it and putting it straight into a baking dish. He let it cook for two hours then poured ketchup over the whole thing before offering to share. It resembled meatloaf sorta, if you ignored the squiggly gray brown stuff oozing from it and the perfectly raw pink core and this man pitied my skills.

I didn't worry about cooking anymore. At least three times a week we were engaged to go hang out with some of Anthony's elderly customers. One dinner invitation leads to another and one lady tells another lady ...check it, Nate had gone viral in Forks. I didn't mind, Nate and I understood lonely. It doesn't seem like a big deal until it's you aching inside from lack of companionship. The food was good too, which was a huge bonus for me. Nate on the other hand liked Charlie's raw in the middle meatloaf just fine so I wasn't too insulted when I served something that made Nate say, "What is it supposed to be Beautiful?"

"No Charlie, we will be fine for dinner." Nate volunteered. "We're dropping in on the Cullen's on the way out of town tonight."

I groaned with pained exaggeration. "Did you tell Alice about tonight?"

"Yes." Nate's show of innocence didn't fool me.

"Really, just happened to mention it huh?"

"Leah, please be kind. Alice, Esme, and even Rose seem to need this. Think of them. It makes them happy."

Think if you will of how Alice dressed me to go on patrol, black cocktail dresses and tennis skirts. I wore shoes to dinner that were worth more than the car I drove to work. That chick got positively spastic when she dressed me for a night out. She couldn't be reigned in. The first night we went out with my friends I let her dress me and spent a good deal of time convincing my girlfriends that my gear was knock-off internet crap.

"I'm not trying to be that 'way'. This is not about my attitude. It's about discretion." I tossed the ice pack into the sink. My back stiffened and I shifted my weight onto my back foot and put a hand on my hip.

"Esme loves when we come over for dinner. I believe she's jealous of having to share us with my lady friends." Nate relaxed his stance, leaning back on the counter, feet crossed, arms folded across his middle. I was not fooled.

Charlie balked at lady friends but he knew about our dinners out. I guess the term 'lady friends' just sounded weird as hell. He did have to remind us that the elderly often had fixed incomes, hint hint. Coming fresh from my mama's house and Esme's I kinda forgot that other people had food expenses too. We never arrived empty-handed after that. Charlie put his beer on the table, his jaw was set, his eyes alert. We were collectively in our fight stances.

"She's surrounded by people all the time!" I returned. I don't know why I was upset since having dinner with Esme didn't bother me at all. Nate, planning this behind my back bothered me. Assuming he knew what was best for me pissed me off.

"Yes she is, but she enjoys your company too. In your push for independence you must consider her feelings." Nate didn't stir, if anything he became more relaxed. I hated, hated, hated when got all cool like that. My temper boiled in reaction to his calm which was starting to touch my nerves.

It's not like Nate and I planned to get into fights, but sometimes we did. The odd thing was whereas I had grown up in a stable and loving family with two parents who, although they loved each other dearly, occasionally fought about stuff like Dad's poor eating habits and Mom's tightwad ways, Charlie had not. Maybe his folks didn't fight and he hadn't been married long enough to that ditzy broad who ran away from the rain. I mean talk about fighting for love, that chick couldn't be bothered to get a raincoat and get over it. When Mom and Dad fought Seth and I quietly and quickly left the room or the house when we were older. We didn't worry too much because we were secure. Charlie on the other hand stayed in the room, took sides and didn't mind giving his opinions.

That's how we ended up adding these nights out with my old running buddies from high school that had gone off to college. One night seemingly out the blue Nate burst out with, "Its just one more thing I cannot give you. I cannot be normal, nor can I give you a normal life and a sure as hell can't give you a baby!" He leapt up from the sofa and I had trouble remembering how we got to this point. I swear we had only been watching television, a commercial came on and I said, "Aren't they precious?" Oh yeah, dancing babies, not even real babies, computer generated breakdancing babies...hell I was being sarcastic.

My response was the ill thought out, slack jawed, "What?"

"What do you mean 'what'? It is always with the babies you cannot have. The children I am unable to give you. Because of me you will not stop phasing like your brethren. You will not age, you will not resume the life of a normal woman. You are doomed to live the abnormal life I lead."

I sat there shocked as shit. I didn't know what to say. I deemed it might be best to keep my mouth shut. Nate was angry; he didn't look particularly pissed off but I felt his anger bubbling inside me. I dared not to react to it and inadvertently escalate the situation. In my silence it finally dawned on me that there was another side to his supportive steadfast attitude about my barrenness. See, up until then it was all about me, at least it was in my mind. Mom had been telling me to think about it from his side but when I did that I focused on poor Nate, can't have kids because he's with me. For the first time it occurred to me that he might feel it was his own personal shortcoming.

"Son," Charlie had straightened up from the recliner. "It's way too early in your relationship to contemplate..."

That was as far as he got before Nate cut him off, "Our relationship is forever, early has no bearing".

Had it been one of my pack members or even a Cullen, they would have backed off. If you see a man behead a sentient being a time or two, you tend to tread lightly. No one had ever mentioned this to Charlie so he went on, "Early has every bearing. You don't know each other well enough yet to bring another person into your relationship. You need some time just establish who you are as a couple. There is no substitute for time. None."

Charlie went on to say, "Leah I understand you have a duty to your pack and your reservation but you need to reconnect with the life you enjoyed before all this weird stuff. Call up your old friends, go out and enjoy yourself. Your Daddy was always worried you would flunk out of school from partying, certainly not from getting in the family way." Then and there he insisted I call at least two of my girlfriends from high school that he remembered hanging out at my house. Girls I dissed because it wasn't safe for me to be around them and cause I kinda hated everything and everybody for a while there.

I think the word is 'cathartic' to explain picking up the phone and calling people whom my last conversations with involved the words either 'fuck you' or 'eat shit and die'. I balked, claiming I didn't know their numbers anymore but Charlie stood right there while I called their parents for their numbers. It went fairly well, there were some tears and crap. No big deal, anyhow, I now had running buddies who weren't pregnant and settled down. Abby and Jamie were silly as hell but they were fun and their friends were too.

I had lost that fight but I'd be damned if I was going to lose this one. "I enjoy her company too, but maybe I want to wear a pair of comfortable jeans and a decent pair of boots instead of whatever Alice has planned. It's a Thursday night college beer karaoke thing, not the freaking Oscars. You know I'm perfectly capable of dressing myself and styling my own hair." I was trying to keep my temper in check but not real hard.

"We have been out several times with your friends and each time the first thing you do is check out every woman in the room to see how you rate. So to use your words, I'm going to call bullshit on jeans and boots." Nate looked me in the eye and called me a liar.

Charlie weighed in, "Leah, I'm gonna have to agree with Nate on this one." Sure, my first instinct was to say what's new with that. But honestly, if you live with a peacekeeper, Charlie was pretty fair. In our remote control squabbles, he simply took the remote and watched fishing. We learned to settle our own viewing preference differences rather than watch largemouth bass fishing. In the 'cut back on the fucking coffee or I'll slit your goddamned throat' fights, Charlie told Nate, "You have got to calm her down." So he cut back on the coffee. In the 'You shall not wear that out the house Beautiful' fights Charlie tended to side with modesty and when the fight was 'Dude you have to wear a shirt every time you leave the house, I don't care what Paul does, every single time' Charlie tended to side with me, saying, "What the hell is wrong with you man, put a shirt on. You can take it off when you get to the reservation."

Charlie went on, "My own daughter never gave a flip about such things like clothes, shoes, makeup and what have you, so I know that attitude. You are different and keep in mind I've been around you your whole life so I know all about times you tried to wear your princess costumes to school after Halloween or how you blew your Daddy's credit card up shopping with your girlfriends down in Portland. Be nice and go play girly stuff with the Cullens, you know you want to."

He was right I did want to. I had no real problem with eating at Esme's, I liked being dolled up by Alice and Rose but I hated being taunted by the other pack. My real problem was the calls of 'pet pack' but I'd be damned if I was going to stand the ground that didn't want Paul, Jared, Colin and Brady to pick on me calling me and overgrown lapdog. I didn't want it to bother me but it did. It sounded weak to my mental ears so I didn't try to defend it. Instead I went with Nate to Esme's as I had been told to. I let Rose and Alice loose on me and ate a delicious meal as instructed. We took an hour on our trek down to Olympia. I killed them with my shoe game and ate up the envy like candy. I got a couple looks about my gear but a one or two 'old Leah' glares forestalled questions. Rumors swirled. Behind my back they whispered Nate was raised by a wealthy Columbian drug dealer who never knew Nate wasn't his real son until Sam showed up in South America looking for his brother. They linked Nate's appearance to Sam's disappearance. They decided Nate still had a stash of funds from his former life and that I, an utterly spoiled Daddy's girl, insisted he spend it on me. It was a strange story but since truth was much stranger than fiction I let it ride.

Charlie was a bossy, interfering roommate but he gave sound advice. Go forth, party, and look good while you do it. Gotta love him.


End file.
